It All Started With A Shot of Tequila
by kirigirisplushrump
Summary: Arthur was sulking after catching his wife cheating again, and gets totally wasted. But fate has it that he gets picked up by a the son of a powerful CEO, Alfred. They quickly go from strangers to friends to... lovers? T for now, but rating may change.
1. 1 Tequila 2 tequila 3 tequila FLOOR

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to me! Yeah right. For alcohol's sake, Alfred is going to be 21. Oh, and though I have a bottle- er, squirty thing- of Nasonex, I do not own it.**

Arthur sat at a bar, drowning his sorrow in self pity and tequila. How many times had his wife cheated on him? Had to be at least 20, stupid women. She never approved of his bisexuality. He'd walked into his bedroom to find her naked with another bloke. Then she told him some cock and bull story about how he got her drunk and pressured her into be with him, how it wasn't her fault, it was all his fault for not being there to protect her. Like he shouldn't have been working his ass off to bring her all the money that she wastes on expensive jewelry. He had to take some time to think, but he got completely wasted instead.

"Bloody wanker stealing my woman." He muttered. "Hit me again." He set his empty tequila glass down on bar.

"Sir, that's your 5th shot. I think you should take a break." The bartender informed him. Arthur glared at him.

"Did I ask for your opinion?" He growled. The bartender backed up, frightened out of his pants.

"Sorry about that, he get's a little mean when he's drunk, I'll take him home." Arthur felt a hand land on his shoulder. He turned around. A boy looking about 19 years old with messy brown hair and crooked glasses smirked down at him.

"Aren't you a little young to be in a bar." He hissed. The boy smirked wider and pulled out a drivers license. It said that he was Alfred F. Jones and apparently he was 21 years old.

"Come on, time to go home, honey." Alfred cooed as he dragged Arthur off the chair.

"Unhand me you bloody twat!" Arthur screamed.

"You say the darnedest things." Alfred replied dragging him out.

"Let me go!" Arthur grunted, tearing an arm away from the young American. Alfred dropped the other one and Arthur tried to get up. But as sure enough, he fell to the floor, so intoxicated that he couldn't even stand. Alfred held in his laughter.

"Well you know what they say, one tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor!" He joked. Arthur glared at him. "Come on." He held out his hand.

"What do you expect me to do with that." Arthur asked

"I'm being courteous." Alfred replied. "Take it, I'll have my driver take you to the hotel, you're obviously aren't from here."

"I'll have you know that I moved here three months ago!" Arthur informed the younger man.

"Then I'll just take you home. Charles knows his way around everywhere." Alfred continued.

"I'm not going back there!" Arthur blurted. Alfred raised his eyebrows.

"Then where are you staying." He asked.

"Uh...." Arthur really hadn't thought this out very well.

"Come back to my place." Alfred offered. "You can stay in one of the spare rooms."

"Ne-ugh." Arthur started to refuse, but his body caught up with him and he vomited all over the bar floor.

"I'll take that as a yes." Alfred stated, picking up the older man bridal style.

"Hey!" He exclaimed. "Put me down you Yank!"

"You can't walk on your own, and Charles is parked right outside the bar." Alfred explained. "Just bear with me until we reach the car. I promise, it'll be fine." And lo and behold, a limousine was parked right outside of the bar.

"Bloody hell." Arthur muttered, exasperated by the sight of the limo.

"Yeah, a little ostentatious for me, but daddy took away my car. He didn't seem to appreciate my little prank. Those benefits are always so boring, I thought I'd lighten the mood with a harmless prank, but those stiff business types don't appreciate a good joke. Either that or they really hate badgers. Well, one of them named Gilbert seemed to have a hell of a lot of fun poking one with a spoon..." Alfred told as he loaded Arthur into the car.

"You're very immature for a 21 year-old." Arthur commented, remembering how when he was 21, he was quite the gentleman, never pulled any silly prank.

"Well, you never had to deal with my father." Alfred laughed.

"Maybe not, but I'm glad. Mine1 wasn't the kindest man, but at least my father didn't spoil me into becoming some nasty git who preys on drunken foreigners." Arthur spat, but instead of being insulted, Alfred laughed feverishly.

"Oh, so now you're a foreigner? You said before, you've been here for 3 months, so you obviously aren't a foreigner." Alfred teased.

"Don't use my own words against me!" Arthur yelled, causing Alfred to laugh harder.

"Oh, lighten up, we all say things we regret when we're drunk. I once told a man that I was a chicken farmer from Vermont." Alfred chuckled. Arthur gave him a strange look. How did he manage to get himself in this position.

"You're very strange, you know." He thought out loud, a smile breaking out across his face.

"But you gotta love me anyway." Alfred giggled. Arthur stopped smiling. His wife had always said that whenever she did something wrong, which happened to be very often.

"Un-noong." Arthur groaned, struggling to hold back his tears. His heart ached, every time he caught her cheating, it was the same thing. 'You love me anyway, right.' He put his head in his lap.

"Hey, are you okay?" Alfred asked, worried. "Are you crying?" Tears had began to seep through Arthur's fingers.

"No!" He sniffed. "I, uh, just have allergies." Alfred rolled his eyes.

"Alright, we'll get you some Nasonex when we are inside." Alfred opened the door.

"That was quick." Arthur marveled.

"It was thirty minutes!" Alfred chuckled back. Arthur's jaw dropped, but not at how fast time flew by, but at the huge mansion in front of him. Alfred grabbed his wrist. "Let's give you the bedroom right next to mine!" he cheered.

**Yaho~ It's finished un! First chapter. I really hate his wife, or as I like to call her, nameless lady number 563. Anyway, you may not have noticed, probably not, but it is an ongoing joke with my sister, totalnarutofangirl, that in all our Hetalia fics, Prussia has to poke badgers with spoons... Gotta love your family. Ja, minna.**


	2. Home Free Or Not

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. I went to a waterpark today. Two guys were doing these tricks on this simulation surfing thing that they have at the park, like not a video game. Anyway, one almost fell over, and the other guy caught him and I was all "Kyaa! Yaoi!"**

"What, wha-" Arthur cried. Alfred smirked again, dragging him towards the front door.

"Oh, don't worry, I won't do anything" He comforted. "Yet." He added as he grabbed the fancy doorknob.

"Alfred? Is that you?" A quiet voice called as they opened the door.

"Yeah, I'm home." He replied as he slammed the stained-glass door.

"Be careful, such a beautiful door." Arthur remarked. A man that looked almost exactly Alfred, minus the smug smirk that Alfred always had across his face.

"Oh, who is that." He asked.

"I met him at a bar. He was completely hammered, so I took him here." Alfred explained. The other man sighed.

"Father won't be happy about this." He shook away.

"Ah, come on, Mattie, Dad won't give a damn. He's always so busy the company that he doesn't ever pay attention." Alfred swung his hand is dismissal.

"Ugh, I hate to say it, but can you show me to the guest room, I'm totally zonked." Arthur yawned. He knew he would have a wicked hangover the next morning.

"Oh Al!" Matthew, known as Mattie to his brother, exclaimed.

"Mattie," Al mimicked. "Listen, we'll talk about this, but I need to get Arty here to a room." He led Arthur up a winding staircase.

"Ugh." Arthur groaned as he stumbled over a stair.

"Watch your step." Alfred warned. He opened the door. "Sorry, it's a little small, but it's got an amazing view." Arthur's jaw dropped. A double balcony bed like he had always dreamed about as a child, an elegant cherry dresser with a matching side-table. And Alfred hadn't been lying. When you looked out the window, it was like all of Beverly Hills was glistening below him.

"Amazing is and understatement." Arthur gawked. Alfred led him to the dresser.

"I have some extra pajamas in the top drawer, the bathroom is across the hall if you need it, and I'll be right next door in case you need me." He kissed Arthur on the forehead and left him to get dressed.

-

"Silk." Arthur muttered as he grabbed a pair of maroon pajamas from the dresser drawer with a gold embroidered rose with a J hanging from in over the breast pocket. He stripped of his own sweater-vest he'd gotten as a gift, button down cotton shirt, and his discount brand khaki pants and threw on the the unfamiliar silk pajamas. He walked over to the bathroom across the hall. Of course it was extravagant, complete with fancy soaps and gold towel racks. Arthur splashed his face with the water, as he didn't have a toothbrush, left back to the room and climbed into his dream bed.

"Un." He moaned as he settled in. The mattress was like lounging on a cloud and the sheets were smooth and warm, like drinking his favorite Earl Grey tea in his grandmother's rose garden. He soon slipped off into fruity dreamland, unaware of the chaos going on below.

-

"I can't believe you!" Matthew blurted as Alfred walked down the stairs.

"Easy now, Mattie." Alfred put his hands up a couple inches away from his chest. "Let's be rational."

"Rational!" Matthew began to rant, "you're never rational. You always do things in the heat of the moment and then expect me to pick up the pieces. You decided to bring home another toy and I bet-"

"It's different this time!" Alfred interrupted. Matthew raised an eyebrow.

"Different, eh?" He questioned. "And how is this one any different than the last 6?"

"Because..." Alfred sighed. "You won't think I'm crazy?"

"No more than I already do."

"I had a feeling." Alfred started, causing Matthew to snort. "No, I just had this feeling that I should go into that bar, like something was waiting for me there. And Arthur was sitting there, drowning himself in tequila, you know, I thought the Brits preferred rum, but whatever. And then I knew..." He paused.

"You knew what!" Matthew spat, getting impatient. He was normally very calm and quiet, but he was getting tired of cleaning up after his twin brother's mistake.

"I think he might be the one." Alfred whispered. Matthew rolled his eyes. "No, I'm serious. It was like those fairytales. When I saw him, my heart stopped and I heard a ringing in my ears!"

"Ever thought that maybe _you've_ been drinking too much!" Matthew protested. Alfred shook his head.

"I haven't drunk any liquor all day." He answered. Mathew sighed.

"You really like this guy, don't you?" He gave in. Alfred nodded. "Alright, I'll get off your back about it. But good luck trying to convince Dad." Alfred gave his signature smirk again.

"Don't worry, Dad isn't even home, he probably'll be gone for at least another week, and I'll have a plan by then." Alfred commented. Just then, they heard the a slam of the front door.

"Boys, I'm home!" A voice called from the entrance.

"Shit"

** Ooh! Who's the daddy gonna be? Seriously, who, I have no idea. I was contemplating having it be France, if I choose to have PruCan as a side pairing, but I don't know who to have the father be if it's Franada. Maybe just some random guy. Please help me out guys. I can't update until I know what the hell I'm gonna do.**


	3. I Swear I Mean It

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

**Well, the results are in. The dad is... Russia! And now for the moment of truth. Who will Canada end up with: Prussia or France. The answer... after this commercial break! I'm kidding, don't you hate it when the do that? Any, results. Matthew ends up with... both! For those who are thinking 'WTF, what is this fruitcake going on about' let me explain. Gilbert was a business associate of Ivan, and he started seeing Matthew behind his back. Ivan found out and had his transferred to Germany. The Francis will come into the picture, and they start seeing each other when BAM! Gilbert comes back. Can you say drama? Now Matthew has to choose, and he's too caught up with his own life to help his brother and his love life. I was working on this Miss Macabre Grey, who was a huge help, thank you.**

Their father Ivan walked through the front door of their Beverly Hills mansion. He had just come back from a business trip to see his to little boys, who weren't so little anymore. Matthew looked at Alfred in distress.

"This is not good." He whispered. "Remember what happened with Gilbert!" Alfred nodded.

"He had him deported!" He whispered back. Matthew glared at him.

"He was just transferred, not deported." He replied. Alfred rolled his eyes.

"That's just the official story."

"Boys, I said I was home, why are you not here to greet me." Ivan popped into the room, causing the boys to jump.

"Oh, uh, sorry Dad, Mattie, uh, hurt his leg." Arthur ad-libbed.

"What!" Matthew whispered sharply in surprise. Alfred inconspicuously kicked Matthew in the shin, causing him to yelp.

"Ya-ep." He switched his cry of pain to play along. "I'm very clumsy." Ivan sighed. 'I'll get you' Matthew mouthed to Alfred.

"Well, I was just going to help him to his room." Alfred continued. Ivan nodded.

"Alright, you can properly greet me tomorrow morning with some pancakes." He replied. Alfred's face brightened up.

"Yeah! Pancakes! Oh, Arthur will love-" He realized what he had started to say and swung his hands to him mouth, causing Matthew, who was supported by the left arm, to fall to the ground with an "oof" Ivan raised an eyebrow.

"Arthur? Who is this Arthur and where is he?" With each word, the room started to get darker.

"You're on your own." Matthew pulled himself up and limped off out of the room to the elevator, that's right, they are so rich they have an elevator. The again, their dad is the CEO of APH electronics, the biggest electronics company in the United States.

"Thanks. You were so much help." Alfred sarcastically yelled after him. He turned back to Ivan, who didn't actually look that angry.

"Listen, son, I think it's about time we had a talk." Ivan sat down on the leather loveseat, patting the seat for Alfred to sit next to him. Reluctantly, Alfred obeyed.

"Yes." He nervously replied.

"I'm not angry." Ivan shook his head. "But I am disappointed." That shocked Alfred. For his entire life, Ivan had only had two emotions, content, and angry. He felt a twinge of guilt.

"I know, you don't like having 2 gay sons." His voice shook as he spoke.

"What!" Ivan sounded shocked. "I don't care about that, you're my sons and I love you anyway, besides," he looked around "Your mother always wanted you guys to be gay. She was a huge yaoi fangirl." He whispered. Alfred and Matthew's mother had died when they were young, and their father rarely talked about her, it was 18 years ago, and he was still getting over the grief.

"Then why are you disappointed?" Alfred asked.

"Because you're 21, and you're still playing around with a different girl, er, boy each week. You think I don't notice the discarded clothing around the house I know don't belong to you boys. A father always knows. I know that most kids your age do stuff like that all the time, but I'm telling you as someone who knows, it won't end well, and you'll learn to regret it." Ivan explained. Alfred nodded.

"Yeah, I know, but Arthur is different!" Alfred started. "I really like him."

"Do you?" Ivan asked, in that 'think about it' voice parents always use when they want you to think about something.

"Yes, I do." Alfred answered, slight defiance in his voice. Ivan smiled. Neither of his sons had ever spoke back to him, and he was doing it for love, so it was okay. He may not know it yet, but a father's intuition is strong, he knows when his boy is in love.

"Alright." He gave in. "I'll take a look at him in the morning. Now go make sure your brother made it to bed alright, and go to bed yourself." Alfred smiled.

"Okay." He jumped off the couch and set out for his brother.

"And one more thing," Ivan stopped him, and he curiously turned around. "Next time, please don't kick your brother in the shins" Ivan gave a smirk that could give Alfred a run for his money. Alfred instead looked at him in shock.

"How did you know!" He exclaimed.

"A father always knows."

** Alright! The third chappie is done. Russia seemed a little OOC, but it made it work. But don't worry, he'll get back to his normal Russia self again. I started making some motivational posters and posted them on deviantart. That was fun! School starts again tomorrow, sigh. I promise that I'll try to keep up and update soon, but I don't know how soon. But I am serious, reviews help me write. They give me inspiration and the will to write. So, please review.**


	4. Oh What A Beautiful Morning

**Disclaimer: Hetalia isn't mine, but I think I'll get over the grief. It feels weird to be back in school. And back in rehearsals. Oh my gosh, today I went to a dance shop to get some ballet shoes, and the guy running the shop today was so totally gay! Seriously, everything about him, the way he walked, the way he talked, even the way he dressed screamed gay. He was all "They charge tax on dance shoes because they say they aren't 'necessities' but they totally are. I go threw about 1 pair a month..." and so on. It was pretty sick. Anyway, to the story *points up into the air in a random direction* **

**BTW! Ivan Braginski in this world is like the Bill Gates of our world, yes I know that he is no longer the richest man in the world, but it's close enough.**

Arthur woke up feeling better rested than he had in years. He actually got up and stretched. Where was he? He knew he wasn't home, he couldn't hear his wife yelling at the cat to stop scratching up the furniture, and he couldn't be at a motel, the bed was to comfortable for any of the rooms he could afford and it didn't reek of alcohol and cigarettes. He opened his eyes slightly. These pajamas weren't his. He opened his eyes completely. This bed wasn't his. This room wasn't his. He jumped out of bed and skidded across the hardwood floor to the window. The memories of the previous night came flooding back as he stared out the window. His wife had been cheating on him and he went to the bar. Then he got picked up by some incredibly rich bloke with shiny teeth and a confident gleam in his eyes. Arthur couldn't recall them doing anything...

"So how'd ya sleep?" A voice came from the doorway. Arthur whipped around. Alfred was leaning on the door frame, hands in pockets. Arthur felt slightly relieved. "You aren't too hungover for pancakes, I hope. My brother makes the best ones you'll ever eat!" Arthur did feel a little peckish. It would be impolite to decline such an offer, right? Well that's what he told himself.

"I suppose I could." He tried to hold back his grin. Neither him nor his wife could cook if their lives depended on it, and a home cooked meal would be a nice change of pace. As he and Alfred began to walk to the staircase, another question popped into his head. What would go great with pancakes? "Hey, do you have any Earl Grey tea?" He casually asked.

"Huh? Nah, I don't think so. We might though." He answered. "I'm a coffee guy myself." Arthur had to admit that he wasn't surprised by the answer. They strolled into the kitchen to see what looked like a relatively normal family. Sort of. Matthew was wearing a "kiss the chef" apron while quietly whistling the Canadian national anthem and Ivan was sitting is a suit and tie reading the newspaper, completely engaged by the story of the suicide bombings in his hometown of Moscow. The scent of maple syrup wafted through the air. The real stuff, not the crappy store-brand shit.

"Ah, morning Alfred. Um, Arthur, was it!" Matthew greeted, a lot calmer than he was yesterday. Cooking made him feel serene. Ivan looked up from his newspaper. He quietly looked Arthur over. He certainly was different. He seemed a bit older than Alfred, though he was shorter. He was swimming in the pajamas that Alfred had lent him.

"Oh good morning. I apologize, but I seem to forgotten your name." He was British too. That was a new one. Alfred had always been intrigued by accents. He used to have such a big fascination with England, he used always say that he love England so much, that one day he would marry it **(AN: Kids say cute things like that, I thought it would fit.)** Ivan stood up.

"Hello, Arthur" He stuck out his hand, which Arthur awkwardly took in his own. "My name is Ivan Braginski." Arthur's jaw dropped.

"Ivan Braginski? As in the founder and CEO of APH electronics." He gawked. Ivan gave a small smile and nodded. Arthur turned to Arthur and stupidly stupidly said "I work for your father." Ivan raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, do you now? What do you do in the company." He asked. He didn't talk to normal employees that often.

"I'm in accounting." Arthur answered, chuckling slightly. He was going to eat breakfast with the one of the world's richest men and his twin sons. Matthew came over with a plate of hot pancakes. Alfred cheered and rushed to the table, dragging Arthur along with him. Alfred quickly dug into his pancakes as if he hadn't eaten in days, while Arthur calmly drizzled some syrup on them and cut of a piece, blowing on it gently before placing it in his mouth. His eyes widened, these were the best pancakes he'd ever eaten.

"So Arthur, would you like anything to drink." Ivan politely asked.

"Would you have any tea by chance?" He sheepishly asked. Ivan laughed his husky Russian laugh.

"Of course. Toris!" He called. A man with shoulder length brown hair tied back in a ponytail rushed into the room, sliding on entry. Arthur stared at him, mouth open in awe for the second time that morning.

"Yes, do you- Arthur!" He asked in shock.

"Toris, is that really you?" Arthur replied. Matthew and Alfred exchanged glances.

"I think they know each other."

** Dramatic pause. Okay, dramatic pause over. I wanted to bring Toris (Lithuania) in. He would work for Ivan, although I might have him just be his cousin or something visiting, but Ivan would use him like a butler. No updates tomorrow, I'll be gone most of the day, but I might update on Thursday. I hope to get some USUK is soon. Well, see you guys later.**


	5. Mini Chapter: Spiders

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Hetalia. I got a review asking for more, and I couldn't ignore it, I am so grateful to all of my readers and especially my reviewers, you guys help my me write better. So here's a mini-chapter, it will be short, I'm really pressed for time. We'll start from where we left off.**

**Oh, funny story. so the other day I was bored in orchestra, so I thought which country would be which note, and Canada was C, not because it starts with C, but Canada is always 3 in my mind. We had to do some scale worksheets, and when I was writing is some notes, I forgot C. I started laughing so hard, because everybody forgets Canada! Maybe it's not that funny... Well, we won't forget him here.**

"I think they know each other." Alfred whispered to his brother, who glared back at him.

"No shit, Sherlock." He replied, causing Alfred to lean back in surprise. That wasn't exactly the thing Matthew usually said.

"Oh, you two know each other?" Ivan smiled. Toris looked at him in horror. Confused, Arthur turned around, trying to see what could possibly be so scary, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

"Are you okay?" He asked, cocking his head to the left as he asked. Toris faked a smiled, his lips shaking while he tried.

"Yeah." He answered, his trembling voice making it seem less convincing. "I just, uh" He stared at Ivan "Um. Uh. There was a spider!" He blurted.

"Where!" Arthur yelped. He wasn't afraid of him, at least that's what he said. He was convinced he just hated them with a passion. So much that he didn't want to be anywhere near them. And that if he screamed, it was just to scare them away. Because he was scared, not one bit. But nobody told Alfred this. He grinned in a way that would put the Cheshire Cat to shame.

"Arthur Kirkland, are you afraid of spiders." He said in that I-know-your secret voice. Arthur searched for the words.

"N-no! I just hate them!" He exclaimed. Matthew got up and put his hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay. I'm afraid of violence." Matthew comforted.

"I'm afraid of my sister." Ivan added.

"I'm not afraid of anything!" Alfred boasted.

"Really," Matthew started. "Because I remember you being deathly afraid of-" But before he could say ghosts, Alfred jumped up and slapped his hand on Matthew's mouth.

"Don't finish that!" He yelled. He thought that being afraid of ghosts were so incredibly lame. He didn't want anyone else to know he had such an unhero like quality. But the concept of the seemingly perfect boy having a character flaw, a fear that he was so embarrassing, more embarrassing than a grown man being afraid of spider, was something that Arthur _had_ to know. He had to. And mark his words, he would.

** Sorry it's so super short, I really have, like no time! Just think of it as an addition to the last chapter. I'll write again soon, I hope. Until then, uh, I got nothing. See ya!**


	6. One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

**Disclaimer: Surprise! I don't own Hetalia. Not really a surprise is it. Happy Good Friday by the way for those of you who celebrate it, happy Passover for the possible Jewish readers, and happy belated April Fool's Day. Some idiots thought it would be a good idea for an April Fool's prank to fill balloons with glitter and pop them all over the locker bank. At least it was pretty...**

**Arthur might not find Alfred's fear for a while, but here is my logic: He want's to know about Alfred, so he spends more time with him, paying attention to every detail. He stops hating him, and starts to develop feelings. Feelings=Yaoi. Fangirl logic here!**

**I've also been thinking long and hard about Arthur's ex's name. I chose Anna Sophia, but she goes by Anna. I named her that cause I pictured her looking kind of like Tamaki from Ouran's mother.**

Alfred, who seemed like he was perfect in every way, had something to hide, and Arthur wanted to know what it was. So much that he was haunted by thoughts of what it could be. He couldn't go 2 seconds without thinking of Alfred. Was he afraid of clowns? No, that's not embarrassing, those things are just creepy. Was he hydrophobic? He didn't seem like the kind of person that would be afraid of water. In fact, he didn't seem like the kind of person to be afraid of anything.

"Ugh!" Arthur groaned as he flopped on the couch outside the kitchen. Funny how he had already been starting to treat this place like his own home. He knew Alfred was close behind him, and he knew that Toris had gone off with Ivan, looking as if he'd just seen a ghost, and who the hell knew where Matthew was, it's like he just disappeared.

"Are you hungover?" Alfred innocently asked.

"No, I'm fine." He sighed. Alfred opened his mouth to say god knows what, when he heard some music coming from the entry way. He ran over to get his cell phone from his coat pocket. The name "Anna" popped up. He sighed, he felt oddly disappointed. "Hello." He answered.

_"Where are you!"_ The voice on the other end yelled at him. He winced.

"Who's that?" Alfred curiously asked. Arthur ignored him.

"Calm down Annie." He slowly replied.

_"Don't 'Annie' me! You should be here. Are you still mad at me about, you know?"_ She pressed.

"I'm a little angry," he admitted, "But..." He paused and looked over at Alfred, who had was staring at him intently. He sighed again. "This has just happened too many times. I think it might be time that we... separate." There was a long pause.

_"What"_ Anna finally answered.

"It's just... haven't you noticed how we've grown apart?" He continued, nervously glancing at Alfred, who's eyes had left Arthur and were now following a speck of dust. He didn't appear to be paying attention anymore.

_"Can't we just talk about this."_ Anna pleaded. Arthur wasn't fooled. He was her source of income.

"Fine. Alfred and I will come over and we can talk this out." He gave in.

_"Who's Alfred."_ She hissed.

"He's the friend I've been staying at. He's also my ride, so he needs to come with me." Arthur answered not only the question just asked, but the one that he knew she would as after that. This time it was her turn to sigh.

_"Fine you can bring 'Allen' or whatever. Just be here at noon."_ She agreed. He nodded, though you couldn't see it over the phone.

"I'll see you at noon." He heard the click of his soon to be ex-wife hanging up the phone. He turned to Alfred.

"What's at noon?" Alfred asked, cocking his head to the right.

"Uh," Arthur walked over to the couch, "I have something I need to tell you."

-After telling Alfred the story-

Alfred felt a twinge of pain in his chest. Arthur was _married_! Granted he was trying to work out a divorce, but he wouldn't very well do anything with a married man. He shrugged it off, trying not think to much of it, he would just wait for the divorce to be finalized to do anything that he really wanted to do with Arthur. They sat in silence for a while.

"So, I'll just go get dressed." Arthur broke the silence. Alfred remembered something.

"Oh yeah, your clothes reeked of alcohol, so I sent them to be dry-cleaned." He added.

"You WHAT!" Arthur exclaimed. "Those were my only clothes!"

"Don't worry your pretty little head." Alfred gave Arthur a light tap on his head as he added the last part "I probably have something that you can wear, 'kay." Arthur felt his cheeks get warm as Alfred smiled at him. He was blushing! Why was he blushing?

"Uh, fine." He turned so Alfred wouldn't see his face. "But nothing too flashy."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of everything." He kissed Arthur on the forehead. Arthur froze. Such a simple gesture, but it seemed so... naughty. He should have pushed Alfred away and yelled at him to go to hell. Or at least slap him. But he didn't. Because, truth be told, he liked it. Which was the scariest thing about it. Because it meant that maybe, just maybe, he might be falling for Alfred.

-

**Another chapter! Next time they go to Arthur's house to visit with Anna Sophia. Imagine her face when they pull up in a limo, because that is what they have for transportation. Stubborn Arthur won't say he's in love. I'll try to update soon! I promise! But I'm gonna start something. I know a lot of useless trivia and such, so you get a useless fact at the end of each chapter. Fun, huh? Well, you get one anyway.**

** Did you know that only about 5% of people dream in color? Sleep on that!**


	7. Gives you Hell

**Disclaimer: You know what comes next. I'm gonna try to make this chapter longer! Hurray! By the way, has anybody else wondered why old ladies dye their hair things like purple and and blue. I saw this one pink haired old lady today. _That_ was frightening. Back to what you really care about: the story.**

Alfred led Arthur out to the limo. Arthur abruptly stopped. He was already wearing Alfred's clothes, which included the cashmere polo sweater vest that he had stared at in the store window, but nearly passed out when he saw that price tag, which was also something Alfred never wore and willingly gave to Arthur. Showing up in his strictly middle-class neighborhood in a stretch limo seemed like too much. Alfred stopped, one foot already in the door.

"What are you waiting for." He asked.

"Well, it's just..." Arthur felt a twinge of embarrassment. "It seems a little... ostentatious."

"I don't know what ostentatious means, but I think I just got insulted." He replied.

"No, I meant, uh." Arthur struggled for words. "Uh, let's just get going." He gave in. He told Charles the address and they were off.

"Beautiful day." Alfred sighed, staring out the window. He was right. It was comfortably in the 70 degree range and there wasn't a cloud in the sky.

"Yeah." Arthur's head was filled with his worries. Who would get the house? Where would he go if she got the house? Will anything ever be the same? If not, would that be a good thing?  
Alfred was also deep in thought. They had moved on from the picturesque mansions to the part of town to the less pretty part. People stared at them as they drove through town, curious eyes following them like they were aliens or something. Alfred stared back. He felt like he was. He saw a homeless man begging for change, and how everyone just passed him by as if he wasn't even there. A man holding his head low, wearing a black suit and a bright red tie. He looked at his cell phone, then put it back and whispered something to himself. A group of teenage girls in the walked opposite direction, laughing, walking right past another girl, making an obvious attempt to act like she wasn't there. Alfred saw the sorrow in the other girl's eyes, how she longed to be one of them. Everyone seemed so caught up in their own worlds. How was this the Los Angeles he thought he knew. There was so much he didn't know. All these people, so many of them needed help. Why had he never cared?

"We're almost there." A voice snapped him back to reality.

"Huh?"

"I said we're almost there." Arthur repeated. They had moved from the busy streets to a normal neighborhood. The limo stopped in front of a quaint single story brick house. Arthur stepped right out on the grass. "Come on." Arthur led him to the front door, which had luckily been unlocked, because he didn't have his key.

"There you are." A beautiful young woman with long wavy blonde hair and cerulean (blue for those of you who don't speak color) eyes. "Did you bring that Alfonso kid or whoev-" She stopped mid sentence when she saw the limo.

"Arthur! She talks just like you!" Alfred exclaimed.

"Yes Alfred, it's called an accent. People from Britain tend to speak in a British accent." He calmly explained.

"Excuse me, but where did that limousine come from?" Anna broke in.

"It's mine." Alfred replied. "Don't worry, take as long as you need. Charles is good at waiting." Anna realized, that limo must belong to him, which means he must be rich. Forget Arthur, she'd found someone else, someone with more money.

"Oh, well why don't you come in then." She giggled in an attempt to be cute, as if to signal something, but Alfred did speak women, being strictly gay, and he thought she was just being friendly.

"Oh, sure. Come on Arthur." Alfred cheered as he grabbed Arthur's hand and dragged him through the door. Arthur then took control, because, even though the house was rather small, it was just like him to get lost. Arthur led him to the couch.

"Oh, Alfred, would you like anything to drink." Anna came into the room holding a tray with two cups of tea on it, one for her and one for Arthur.

'_Sure, now she remembers his name'_ Arthur thought bitterly. Anna seemed to know almost everything, just played stupid to get what she wanted. He always hated that about her.

"Oh, do you have any coffee?" Alfred politely asked.

"Oh, sure, I'll be right back." Anna replied.

"Be careful!" Arthur warned. "She's brilliant, and tricky. She can play men like a violin." This made Alfred chuckle.

"Remember?" He pointed to himself. "I'm gay!" Arthur giggle a little too.

"Well that helps." He responded. Anna rushed into the room.

"Sorry if it's a little cheap for your taste. It's just a store brand." She apologized.

"Nah, it's fine. All coffee's good coffee to me." Alfred laughed and Anna joined along.

"Uh Annie, can we get to the divorce?" If looks could kill, Arthur would have dropped dead from the glare Anna gave him. She turned back Alfred and smiled again.

"Yes." She turned her grin into a sad puppy dog frown. She was quite the actress back in London. "It's very sad, but I think your right. It's time for us to end this." Arthur could see right through her sad face.

"Then let's get to business"

-long boring legal talk later-

"Bye Alfred, hope to see you around." She called as Alfred walked out the door. She grabbed the back of Arthur's sweater vest. "You know I always get what I want, and I want Alfred." She hissed.

"You don't like Alfred, you like his money." He shot back. "You wouldn't give him the time of day until you found out he was rich."

"Does it matter? Whatever you may have with him, it'll be over soon enough. Get over it." Anna flipped her hair.

"Sorry, but I don't think it'd work out between you two. He's not much into gold digging leeches." Or women.

"I won't lose. I never lose." She growled, but what normally made Arthur want to run and crawl under his bed was now an invigorating challenge.

"Well there's a first time for everything." He smirked, copying what he'd seen Alfred do. He'd only known the guy for a couple of hours, but it felt like he'd known him his entire life. Anna wasn't amused.

"This whole confident thing doesn't work for you. Why don't you just sit back and let me take what want." She spat.

"Not this time." He countered.

"Come on Arty! I'm gonna take you shopping for some new clothes!" Alfred called from the limo. Arthur turned around, but stopped at the last step and decided to take one last jab.

"And Annie, the way you're throwing yourself all over Alfred is really pathetic, and it makes you look pathetic too. You may be able to throw on some makeup and a nice dress, but you can't hide what's on the inside." And with that, he turned and left for good, not looking back to see her mouth left agape, completely insulted. Standing up to her made him feel like a new man. But the battles with Anna were not over yet...

-

** Okay, it's not incredibly longer, but I tried. I have to get up early tomorrow, so can't work on it any longer. Don't you just hate Anna Sophia. Alfred would never go for her. Ever. I was listening to Gives You Hell while writing this, which explains the title. Works for the situation, doesn't it? Well, time for the random fact of the chapter!**

** The human brain continues to send out electrical wave signals for up to 37 hours after death. Weird, huh.**


	8. A Not So Touching Reunion

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia, but I think I'll live. Orchestra's so funny! Part of the band rehearses in there when we aren't playing. So anyway I was talking to the teacher when Trisha was all. "Why is there trombone lubricant in here." People stayed quiet for a couple seconds, failing to hold back their laughter when finally Trenton exclaimed "You said lubricant!" Alright, let's get this going, and Arthur is going to be on the verge of a breakthrough, when a past lover-turned-rival shows up and turns that feelings of love into feelings of hate. Subplot, commence!**

Matthew laid back on his bed, staring up at his ceiling, clutching the bear friend his dad's scientists had whipped up. It could talk, answer questions, it was so realistic, despite the fact of being a talking polar bear, it was like it had a mind of it's own. Problem is, it couldn't seem to remember Matthew's name! He hated to admit it, but he was a little jealous of Alfred. He hadn't so much as kissed anyone since Gilbert was transferred to Germany, he holding out for someone special, yet here Alfred doing whatever the hell he wants, and he still gets love before him. There had to be some sort of curse on him to always come in second. Like with baseball, which had sent him to the emergency room on multiple occasions, Alfred didn't seem to understand "slow down." Matthew blushed, considering how that could be taken wrong if it was taken out of context. When they had to build model rockets back in primary school, Matthew's split in half midair and part of it landed in a tree, the other in a small pond, and Alfred's won an award for most creative. Alfred won Class President, Matthew won secretary, and that's because no one else ran. Besides, secretary. Sorta screams "who?"

"Matthew! I have a surprise for you!" His way-too-happy sounding father cried. Happiness usually covered up anger, so Matthew rushed down the stairs, almost crashing into a blonde figure in the door, but was caught by a Frenchman with wavy blonde hair tied in a ponytail.

"You must be more careful, _le juste_" He purred. Matthew opened his mouth, nothing came out. His face felt increasingly warmer. "You dropped your teddy bear." Now his face felt red hot from embarrassment, no doubt he was as red as the rose the man was carrying.

"Matthew, I would like to introduce to you my business associate Francis Bonnefoy. I've been thinking long and hard and decided that it was about time I let you have a boyfriend. So I chose him. He's high up in the company, comes from a good family, and he speaks French. You used to take French, didn't you? You were even in the French club!" Of course he was, he needed something to do while he waited for Alfred to get finished with detention.

"B-but what about Gilbert?" He sheepishly asked. Ivan waked his hand dismissively.

"Matthew, he's thousands of miles away." Ivan answered.

"But it's you're the one who transferred him!" Matthew replied, more confident than he normally was, standing up to his father. But Ivan ignored it.

"He wasn't suited for you. Francis here is. I told you, he speaks French. You can have conversations without Alfred or me even knowing what you're saying, although that won't last very long, I'll have Toris set up a French teacher to come and teach me some of the language so I know what you're saying."

"You do know that Toris doesn't work for us?" Matthew paused before responding. Ivan gave a sly grin and held up a piece of paper. "What's that"

"Just a little contract I have with Toris. He works for me as my personal assistant and I, well I won't go into the detail, but apparently I have more in common with you boys that you thought." And with that, Ivan left, walking towards the kitchen.

"Well I wonder what he meant by that?" The Frenchman in the corner asked, but Matthew had a not-so-funny feeling that he knew exactly what he was talking about. He thought about his father and- oh god! He tried to wipe the mental image from his brain, but it was stuck in there. You can't just stop thinking something like that!

"Oh maple, that is _not_ a pretty picture!" He held his head between his elbows. A hand gently lowered on the his shoulders.

"I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about, but you're so cute I don't care." The larger man grinned. A blush crept across Matthew's face. He couldn't help it. Francis was very handsome, and he was lonely. He racked his brain, trying to come up with something cool to say in response, but he didn't need to, because his train of thought was interrupted by the sensation of another's lips against his own. He froze in his spot, not knowing what to do. Instinctively, he parted his lips, allowing Francis to invade his mouth. The taste of maple from his breakfast on his tongue was replaced by the taste of wine on Francis's. Refreshing. Wait no! He couldn't, he had Gilbert. Against his will, his arms began to raise, redirecting themselves to Francis's shoulders. Damn insticts. Francis was skillful with his tongue, playing with Matthew's in a most pleasurable way.

"That was fu- Oh my god!" Alfred walked through the front door, carrying a shopping bag full of new clothing for Arthur in each arm. Imagine what he felt when he walked in on his brother tongue-tangoing with some stranger! It was a mix of shock and pride with a hint of jealously thrown in. He was just starting to get along with Arthur. Matthew tore away. Crap! Alfred saw him. Francis nonchalantly wiped the Matthew's saliva from his mouth. Always nice to kiss someone new. Arthur walked in, almost crushed by all the shopping bags.

"You could have at least carried more than 2 bags." His legs shook under him from the weight of the clothes as he threw the bags on the floor.

"Arthur Kirkland, is that you?" A familiar voice pierced his eardrums. It sounded vaguely familiar to his first boyfriend, Francis Bonnefoy, but that couldn't be, because Francis moved back to France after they broke up. He couldn't believe he went out with a French person. Nervously, he peered up. Much to his dismay, it was the exact same person.

"What the hell are you doing here. I thought I got rid of you when you moved back to France!" He exclaimed.

"_Mais ici je suis, mon ancien amour._" _But here I am, my former love_. Francis replied.

"Don't talk to me in that horrid language you frog." Arthur spat. Just his luck that he showed up. This had just not been his week!

"Fret not, I'm completely over you. Matthew is much cuter than you were." Francis licked his lips, causing Matthew to nearly faint of the embarrassment. "You were always so reluctant in bed." Arthur was completely mortified, he didn't want anyone to know he'd once slept with the man. Or twice. Or a couple more times. He was humiliated.

"Excuse me, but I demand an explanation what is going on here!" Alfred interjected. "I come in to find you making out with my brother, which is fine by me, really! He needs a little action."

"Alfred!" Matthew screamed, like anything could be added to his complete embarrassment.

"But I'm not gonna let you mess with Arthur! He's had a hard day and doesn't need you harassing him!" Alfred ignored Matthew and continued. Francis turned and examined Alfred. He looked a lot like Matthew, but he seemed more confident, much more confident.

"And just whom do we have here?" He questioned.

"My name is Alfred F. Jones, and this is my house. So get out." He defiantly answered.

"I'm afraid I can't. I'm an invited guest, your father chose me as the the prime suitor for your brother, and we wouldn't want to upset you father, now would we." Francis purred. Alfred was absolutely brimming with anger.

"Dad!"

-

** Another one done. It's have to be a couple of chapters of bonding until Gilbert comes back. But, there is a decision to make. Who does Matthew end up with? That is where you guys come in. Review or PM me with your chose. I'll be counting the votes for the next couple chapters. It's your choice, so let your voice be heard! Now, to the facts. Err, fact.**

** Mouthwash has more alcohol in it than wine. Fun, huh?**


	9. Trapped in the Closet

**Disclaimer: You know what goes here. I'm on a 2 day break, so yay. By the way, there is a special reason the drawer is locked, but you won't find out in this chapter**

**Vote update: Franada: 3 PruCan: 10, but you can still vote!**

"Dad!" Alfred yelled while running to the stairs. Real mature.

"Wait up Alfred!" Arthur ran after, but he was tired from carrying the bags and, frankly he wasn't the fastest runner. Back to Arthur. He knew exactly where his father would be. Where was he always when he was home? His office. On the surface, it looked like a completely normal office, sort of. It had bookshelves covering an entire wall and the mahogany desk certainly looked expensive, not to mention the newest model of APH computers on the desk. But it looked like it belonged to just another boring filthy rich business man. On the surface. Because, though Ivan was certainly filthy rich, and a business man, he was not what you would call boring. Because in his top right drawer, which was always locked, there was a switch in back. You flip that switch and that boring office becomes anything but.

The curtains close as a jacuzzi rises from the floor and the bookshelves part to reveal a large screen. A projector lowers from the ceiling to make for the prime movie watching experience. But that's just the beginning! A trophy case on the opposite wall lowers into the floor to reveal a fully stocked bar with food and drinks from all over the world, mostly vodka though, in a little room in the wall. A painting on the wall next to the bar flips around to unveil the latest sound system not on the market left. It was pretty cool, you have to admit. Alfred didn't see why Ivan kept it locked up. He didn't know the dark secret that was hidden underneath. But that's a completely different story.

"Dad explain yo- OH MY FUCKING GAWD!" Alfred slammed the door to his dad's office shut. He'd ran in there to "consult" with his dad about his decision to have Francis be Matthew's boyfriend when he walked in and saw, he didn't really know what. Someone that looked an awful lot like Toris in a French maid outfit and his father, what was his father doing? It looked like he was holding a, what was it. Sort of resembled a whip. Oh, he was going to need some therapy.

~Meanwhile~

"Alfred? Where are you." Arthur roamed the halls. Alfred had ran off so fast that Arthur lost sight of him. He wouldn't admit that he was lost, but it was pretty obvious he had no idea where he was going. All the doors looked that same in this maze of a hall. At the end of the hall, he came across a door. This door was different. A Celtic design was carved on the entire door. The doorknob had a bloodred jewel in it, one that seemed to be calling to Arthur, drawing him closer. He laid his had gently on the knob, finger by finger. He gently grasped it and turned. There was a creak as he opened the door. The room was dark. Part of him wanted to turn around and continue searching for Alfred, but still part of him yet wanted to continue. He looked behind him, then at the dark room. He bit his lip and stepped forward. When he was completely in the room, the door mysteriously shut behind him.

"Is this some kind of horror movie!" Arthur yelled as he jiggled the doorknob. It was locked. He had to figure something out. He felt around the wall for a light switch. Nothing. He sighed and leaned against the wall. He slipped his hands into his pockets when he felt something. It was a little box of matches. He knew the feeling well, from all the times his power went out and he and Anna had to light candles. Ugh, Anna. Funny that yesterday he was so in love with her, and today, well, he felt nothing. Maybe a bit of disdain, but nothing romantic. He chuckled. Three wasted years with that woman. Maybe he was becoming totally gay. He got up. Might as well light a match, see what he could see. He fumbled around in the half empty box of matches and pulled one out. He desperately tried to light the match, but it broke when he struck it to the box.

"Damn." He muttered as he tried the next one. Same result. At last, he got it right on the third one. He didn't have much time before the match would reach too close to his fingers and he would have to blow it out. First thing he saw was a box full of candles. Perfect! He lit them all one by one until there was enough light in the room. Finally, he stood up to get a good look around the room. It wasn't at all what he expected. It was a dusty old room, like some sort of storage closet. Why would something with such an elaborate door be so plain? He walked over to a chair in the middle of the room, but before he sat down on the chair, he felt a cold rush of air pass through him.

"What the hell!" He jumped up. It was like the chair was emanating some strange aura. He looked around once more. Things seemed a little different, darker even. What had he gotten himself into?

~Meanwhile~

Alfred ran downstairs, trying to get the image of his father and Toris out of his head. It couldn't be Toris, but it looked just like him. But his father, he couldn't be gay. Matthew was still standing with Francis in the doorway, looking a little uncomfortable at the smiling Frenchman. But there was no Arthur.

"Oi Matthew! Where's Arthur." He jumped the last two steps to the bottom. Matthew looked at him curiously.

"But I thought he was with you." Matthew replied. Alfred felt a lump develop in his throat. "He ran after you."

"Oh no, Arthur always had the worst sense of direction. Almost as bad as his cooking." Francis added. Without a word, Alfred turned around and ran up the stairs. Arthur could be anywhere in this mansion, and who knows what he could find. Or, worse yet, what could find him.

**Again, a little short, but it was really wordy. Left a lot of unanswered questions, eh? So, I've got a serious problem. I know I said Russia is gonna have some big secret, but I have no idea what it'll be? Please review your ideas. Or PM me. By the way, did you guys catch Busby's chair? Only Russia can sit in that and live. By the way, you can still vote Franada or PruCan. So, vote, review, give me some ideas, eat some cake, I have no idea. Oh, why don't you enjoy a fact!**

** D.H. Lawrence (he's a classic English author and poet. He also wrote plays and junk) enjoyed taking off his clothes and climbing mulberry trees. What I'd like to know is if he did those at the same time**


	10. Magic's in the Mystery

**Disclaimer: Hetalia, I don't own. However, I do have pasta so I'm good. I recently discovered that I am like the Italy brothers in that I have an erogenous zone, on my sides. My best friend also discovered it, and now tortures me whenever I beat her in video games by grabbing my wrists and poking my sides. Wah! Right, fanfic. I had to bring something occult into this fic. I mean, we're talking Arthur. And I also love the occult.**

"What is this place?" Arthur asked no one in particular. The room looked different now. It didn't look like a normal old storage closet. There was an dusty side-table with tarot cards on it that looked like it hadn't been touched in years. Next to it was a clearing in the middle of the room with what looked like a star in a circle that had been drawn in chalk many years ago. The room was full of fortune-telling equipment and all things occult. There was a spirit board, a crystal ball, even Rhabdomancy rods and boxes of books! Arthur guessed that the candles were for some sort of super natural ritual. But what really caught was the jade pendulum on the table. He'd dabbled with the occult arts when he was younger, and always was intrigued with pendulums, like what made them move. He looked around. Well, what harm would it do to ask it _one_ question. He picked up the pendulum.

"What is yes?" It turned clockwise.

"What is no?" It turned counter-clockwise. Arthur pondered what his question would be. Maybe something about the divorce.

"Am I in love with Alfred?"

~Meanwhile~

Aflred ran all over the house. Where the hell was Arthur. Curse his dad for buying such a large house. He wasn't in the kitchen, not in the bedroom, much to Alfred's dismay, and he knew he couldn't be in his father's office. He came across the last hallway. There had to be like, 30 doors! Okay, more like 8, but that was still a lot, and Alfred would have to try every one. But he at least he wouldn't have to try the one on the end with the strange door and the apache tear obsidian doorknob. That door never opened, and he'd tried. It never budged. He started trying the doors.

No one in the first door, just an empty guestroom. Nothing in the second, it was completely empty. The third had a bunch of, uh, toys in it. He might have to remember that one. Fourth door, wow, that is a lot of vodka. An entire storage room just for vodka. He moved on to the fifth door. There were a bunch of pictures of his father when he was a child. Heh, his aunts were really pretty. Right, Arthur. Sixth door, it looked like an old art studio. That's weird. He had two doors left to try. In the seventh was some sort of lab with an alien in a tube in the middle of the room.

"I'll name him Tony." Alfred turned around for the last door other than the one at the end of the hall. He held his breath as he turned the doorknob. Another empty room. He left with his head held low. As he turned to head back to the entryway, he felt a cold rush of air penetrate his skin. He turned around. The door at the end of the hall was slightly ajar.

~Meanwhile~

"Am I in love with Alfred?" He asked the pendulum. The words had just slipped out. They'd come out of his mouth, but they weren't his. No, they couldn't be. Arthur suddenly felt aware that something was watching him. But there was no one else in the room. No one the he could see. Arthur began to feel a little panicky. What was going on? The jade began to turn... clockwise. Arthur stared at it in horror. "No, no!" He couldn't be in love, not so soon. And he'd just met Alfred, there was no way. Besides, even if he did, you know, have feelings for Alfred, there's no way he'd have feelings for him in return. Alfred was young, tall, handsome, and not to mention filthy rich. He was outgoing, charitable, and fearless, except for that one thing that Arthur still had yet to figure out. He was the complete package. Arthur was short, cynical, and three years older. No way he would be interested in him. Not that it mattered, because there was no way that he liked Alfred.

"Arthur! Are you in here!" Arthur jumped as light poured into the room. He turned to the source and saw Alfred standing in the doorway. His face was wet with sweat and his brow was furrowed with worry. Arthur just stared at him, looking as scared and confused as he felt. In the blink of an eye, Arthur felt Alfred's warm arms wrap around him, pulling him into the taller mans chest, so he close he could hear the heartbeat and smell the coffee on Alfred's jacket. Why did this feel so right? Arthur hadn't notice, but his arms raised too, around Alfred's lower back. He was frightened. So incredibly frightened. He hadn't been alone. Something had been watching him. Something had drawn him to the door. He hated to admit it, but he felt safe in Alfred's warm embrace.

"I was so scared!" He blurted. Alfred looked up, confused. He saw the candles all over the room.

"Hey, how did those get lit?" He asked. Arthur looked up, still not letting go.

"There were some matches in your pockets. I used them to light some candles for light, sorry I wasted three of your matches." Alfred put his hands on Arthur's shoulders and pushed him back to look in his eyes.

"What are you talking about? I only use lighters. Besides, I checked that there were nothing in the pockets before I gave them to you." Alfred responded. Arthur felt the color drain from his face. "By the way, how did you get in here."

"The door was unlocked." Arthur answered.

"That's weird. I've lived here for years and I've never been able to get the door open." Alfred replied. Something weird was going on here. How did the matches get into Arthur's pockets? And why did the door open for him?

"Let's get out of here!" The Brit urgently requested. This place was creepy, and he wanted to get away from it as quickly as possible. He pulled on the younger man's wrist to get him out of there.

"Wait! What's going on!" Alfred ripped his arm away. Arthur had been acting funny since he found him. He looked as white as a sheet and hadn't struggled out of Alfred's hug, which, don't get me wrong, he liked, but something was just not right about this. Arthur turned around with a slight gasp and looked Alfred in the eyes. His mouth hung slightly open and his eyes were wide open.

"I don't know." Arthur told him in a completely serious tone. "But I don't want to find out.

** Creepy, eh. I love all that supernatural stuff. Pendulums are some of my favorites, my friend has a jade one. I've been skipping meals to get writing in, but today I ate 2! Normally I just eat dinner when I'm really busy. I'll try to update again tomorrow. And remember, you can still vote on Franada or Prunada, also known as PruCan. It stands at Franada: 3 PruCan: 12. Facts!**

** Lime Jell-O gives off the same brain waves as adult humans when hooked up to an EEG machine. So cool.**


	11. Captain Arthur Kirkland Strikes Again

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. I know I said I would update Saturday, but I had a party and had too much ice cream cake, which has an intoxicating effect on me, and was totally out of it. No, seriously, I was completely delusional. But now that I'm back to normal, or at least the dwindling sliver of sanity that I call normal, I'll continue.**

**This chapter is dedicated to Miss Macrabe Grey, thanks for the fic and helping me with this one :D**

**THIS IS A TIME-SKIP CHAPTER! Granted the time-skip was only three weeks, but still, there is a time-skip. Why, you ask? So we can get into the friendship portion before romance. And so Gilbert can show up.**

Three weeks had passed since Arthur had began living with Alfred, and their friendship had quickly blossomed. It must have been their object of common interest: how much they hated Matthew's new boyfriend Francis. Though Alfred loved just hanging out with Arthur, he longed for something more. Deep down, so did Arthur, but that wasn't something he would accept. But it was always was in the back of Arthur's subconscious, begging to get out.

"Man, Francis is such a douchebag!" Alfred plopped down on the couch in his room next to Arthur, causing Arthur to spill his tea all over his lap.

"Agh!" He yelped as the scolding liquid seeped into his skin, jumping from the couch.

"Oh my god, are you okay. Let me help you, take off your pants." Alfred followed suit and jumped to his feet. A bright red blush spread across Arthur's face.

"Wha-what!" He stuttered.

"Not for that, if you don't take care of it, it'll leave a burn, and we don't want that to happen." Alfred instructed walking over to Arthur and slipping his thumbs into the waistline of the Briton's pants.

"Wah! S-stop it! I can do it myself." He squirmed around until Alfred removed his thumbs. Arthur turned around and began to remove his stained khaki's when he became aware that Alfred was watching him. "Don't watch! Turn around!"

"It's not like you've got anything that I don't" Alfred commented as he complied to Arthur's request.

"Ow ow ow ow!" The shorter man grumbled as he removed his pants and boxers, which the tea had also soaked through. Luckily, Alfred had a private bathroom, which Arthur ran to to treat his wound.

"Ya okay in there!" Alfred yelled after 5 minutes.

"Ya-yeah, but could you go into my room and grab some new pants?" Arthur yelled back. "But don't touch anything!" His voice sounded panicky on the last part. Like he had something to hide.

"Sure, I'll be back quick." The American man answered as he walked to the door and into the room next to his. He opened the dresser and got the clothing when he spotted something on the bedside table. It was a leather-bound journal with the words "Dream Journal" scratched on the cover. Alfred knew he shouldn't, but what harm could one little peak do.

_April (insert random date here)_

_ I was on a pirate ship again, the fearless captain Arthur Kirkland. I was the most feared pirate in all of England, and was completely surrounded by gold coins and jewels. But that didn't matter because money doesn't matter out at sea. We just took down a French navy ship when storm clouds began to form over the horizon. Suddenly, it became really dark and rainy and our ship was shot. We began to go down when I fell off portside. I was just about to die when I landed in someones arms. Things were suddenly sunny again and we weren't on a pirate ship anymore Alfred was holding me in a field of flowers. And then he leaned in and kissed me and then I woke up. What could it mean? Why does Alfred keep showing up in my dreams? And why did we-_

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" Alfred was cut off by the screaming Englishman in the doorway. Something caught his eye. Arthur was just wearing a peach face towel around his waste, he'd even taken off his shirt because the edges of the white button down shirt had been tucked into his pants and got stained.

"I didn't see anything I swear!" Alfred threw his hands up, causing the journal to fall to the floor, page open to the specific passage. Arthur glanced down and then looked up mortified.

"You didn't read it, did you?"

"Well, I did, but it's okay really, we can't control our dreams." Truthfully, Alfred was flattered that he kept showing up in Arthur's dreams, it meant that he was thinking about him, which meant that he might feel the same way. Although he obviously didn't get it yet, because he seemed so confused in his writing. "Besides, I'm sure you'd make an adorable pirate." Alfred giggled as he imagined Arthur in pirate cosplay. Arthur became flustered again.

"Wha-what! Pirates aren't cute!" He protested. "They are very manly and tough."

"Well then you can't be a pirate, because you're too girly." Alfred concluded.

"I beg your pardon!"Arthur gasped "But I am very manly."

"No way. I'm way more manly than you." The American fought. "I don't keep a diary." He picked the book of the floor and began to read from it again.

_"I was sitting in a rose garden with some of my fairy friends..."_

"Stop it! I was dreaming, I can't control it!" Arthur ran over to grab the book from Alfred, but Alfred held it high above his head so that Arthur couldn't reach it. Arthur tried to grab it, jumping up to try to reach it, but he was to short. He started to get closer to it and Alfred stood on his tiptoes. Finally, Arthur caught on to a maroon leather strip that he used as a bookmark, but as gravity did it's job and pulled him back to earth, Alfred came with him, knocked off balance right on top of Arthur.

"Hey Al, the awesome me is- whoa, I didn't know you had company." A voice came from the doorway. A tall albino man with red eyes and platinum blonde hair stood staring at them.

"Gilbert!"

** Oh yeah! Gilbert's back! Sorry about the shortness, but I have standardized testing tomorrow and have to go to be early. This and the next chapter are the last chapters you can vote in, so vote vote vote, unless you are a doughnut, cause doughnuts don't vote. Speaking of doughnuts, who's up for a useless fact!**

** Dr. Seuss wrote _Green Eggs and Ham_ after his editor dared him to write a book using fewr than 50 different words.**


	12. At the End of the Day

**Disclaimer: you know the drill. I got invited to this super exclusive young authors conference and I am literally walking on air. Okay, maybe not literally, but it is such an honor to be invited to this conference and it means my writing is good, which I sometimes get a little, um, you know. So I will celebrate by writing some more.**

**This chapter is dedicated to the last chapter's wonderful reviewers: totalnarutofangirl, of course, she is my older sister, Kyiasune, awesome name, and Amerikan Pi, 3.14159265357898 that's all I can name off the top of my head. Also, some who didn't log in but still were nice enough to review, ****Kasumi^^ (), You're welcome, and** **nekoneko (), I'll be sure to put some Prucan in there.****The next chapter will be dedicated to this chapter's reviewers.**

**You might not have known, but this story is taking place in the evening. Because they go to Les Mis. I love that musical! I'm reading the book right now! I know there are problems, like it is not playing in America at the moment, but use your imagination!**

"Whoa, dude, sorry. Didn't mean to burst in on you and your boyfriend getting intamite." Gilbert blurted as blunt as ever. That man never sugar-coated anything. Ever. Alfred jumped up. It didn't look good. He was on top of Arthur, who just so happened to only be wearing a towel. Most people would jump to the conclusion that they were going at it.

"It wasn't like that!" Alfred defended. Sure, he wished that it had been like that, but it wasn't. Arthur carefully got up, making sure not to show anything to anyone, certainly not a stranger. After all, he was and English gentleman and should behave as such.

"He was just looking at my journal and I was trying to get it back." Arthur calmly explained.

"You've got an accent! Nice, Alfred. Anyway, just tell me where Matthew is and I'll let you two get back to whatever you weren't doing." He winked. That's when it struck Alfred.

"Gilbert! You're here! And not in Germany!!!" Alfred spazzed.

"Yeah, you know, I am here, and kind of want to see my boyfriend." Gilbert rolled his eyes, already tired of Alfred's spazz attacks.

"Wait, if he's here, then that means-" Arthur caught on.

"I know what you're gonna say. That my brother's stupid new French boyfriend can go fuck himself because Gilbert is here so he won't have Matthew to do that to anymore!" Alfred interrupted.

"That isn't at all what I was going to say you twit!"Arthur yelled. But the previous comment had hit Gilbert like a brick.

"Boyfriend?" He growled. The other two in the room both audibly swallowed. Everybody knows that Gilbert was possessive of what he considered his property, and Matthew was by no means an exception. If anything, Gilbert was more possessive of Matthew that of anything else. Because he loved Matthew more than anything else. He wasn't a genius on, well, anything, but what he did know was that he loved Matthew and Matthew had loved him. And that whatever jerk was trying to take his lover away was going to pay. "Where is he?"

"Who?" Arthur asked. What was going on here?  
"The bastard who is trying to steal my Matthew." The albino answered.

"They should be home-" The front door slammed. "now." Gilbert took off to for the entrance, Alfred close behind him and, once again, Arthur in last, completely forgetting that he was wearing only a towel.

"Wasn't that a great musical, _mon cherie_" Francis cooed as he and Matthew entered into the house. They just got back from a stunning performance of _Les Miserables_.

"Yeah, but the ending was so sad!" Matthew added. They heard a footsteps pounding down the stairs. Matthew had a weakness for tragic endings, he always got so cuddly and cute, exactly what Francis wanted. Matthew had wanted to take things slow, it hadn't been until their third date that Francis even was allowed to peck him on the lips. Normally he was in someones pants before the first date had ended, but it was a sort of nice to get to know Matthew. They had been on nearly 10 dates in just 3 weeks. They had become that cute couple everybody else wishes they could be like. Francis wrapped his arms around Matthew.

"Don't be afraid. You can also cry on my shoulder." He whispered into the smaller man's ear. The aroma of the Frenchman's cologne filled Matthew's nose. He hated himself for falling in love so easy. He thought that if he kept it slow with Francis, he might not fall in love so quickly, but he began to develop a fondness for the man by the end of the second date.

"_Merci_" Matthew replied.

"MATTHEW!" A hauntingly familiar voice caused Matthew to jump. "What are you doing in the arms of another man!" Gilbert ran over and tried to pry Francis off of Matthew. Matthew's arms went limp with shock and the task was easy. Gilbert kept an arm tightly wrapped around Matthew, who,frankly, had know idea what was going on. This, this had to be just a dream.

"Excuse me, _monsieur_," Francis spat, "but Matthew happens to be my boyfriend." He grabbed Matthew by one arm and pulled him close to him.

"Don't use your fancy French language on me! I know your type. Matthew is my boyfriend and has been for the past year!" Gilbert yanked Matthew back. Francis raised his eyebrows.

"Oh, so you're the man that abandoned poor Matthew here," he decided to take a different approach. "Poor kid was heartbroken. For all you've done for him, what ever makes you think that he would take you back."

"I didn't abandon him, I was transferred. And I worked hard everyday work my way up through the company so I could come back to be with him." Gilbert replied. Francis chuckled. Matthew was completely gone, they could say anything they wanted, and he wouldn't hear a thing.

"But you were gone. You left him all alone, and now he is mine." Francis grinned, that charming, yet sinister at the same time grin.

"GILBERT! DON'T GO OFF AND KILL ANYBODY YET! LAWSUITS ARE BAD!" Alfred jumped the last 2 stairs to get down to the action.

"Ah, Alfred just in time. Make this bastard leave your house." Gilbert ordered.

"Tried that. He's one of my father's dogs, and they seem to rank above children." Alfred informed. The German man bit his thumb, trying to think of something to do. Francis certainly was cunning, and people like that almost always get what they want.

"Why are you guys so fast." Arthur panted as he ran down the stairs, still clothed only by a small towel, though he had forgotten.

"Whoa. Arthur, I like the new style." Francis commented. Arthur, turning red the instant he realized what he was, or rather wasn't, wearing, ran to hide behind Alfred.

"Don't look there, you bloody bastard!" He yelped.

"How dare you look at another man when you are so up in the idea that you are dating Matthew." Gilbert scolded. "Especially when you're looking at the person that Matthew's brother is currently fucking!"

"Hey!" Both Alfred and Arthur exclaimed simultaneously.

"Right. You guy's were just fighting over his journal." Gilbert replied in that 'I-don't-believe-you-but-I'll-play-along' voice.

"Hmm, fun as this has been it's getting late, and I should really be taking Matthew to bed, because, at the end of the day, he belongs to me and me alone." Francis grabbed Matthew for the last time. Gilbert's anger got the best of him. He clenched his fists as he walked up to Francis...

** You guys can probably guess what happens next. The title is a song title from Les Miserables. Poor Fantine. Anyway, please review, and you will be mentioned in next dedications. And it helps me write faster. Opening night is next Friday. I am beyond nervous. The next fact honors all of those involved in theater.**

**If an actor refers to **_**Macbeth**_** by name while in the theater, he must spin around in a circle three ****times, while saying a line from the show, and spit.**


	13. Into the Fire

**Disclaimer: Ahem! I do not own Hetalia. Great, now that we have that established, lets got on with things.**

**Dedications: Anesan, also known as totalnarutofangirl85, Allykat001, thank you for reviewing so much, Miss Macabre Grey, don't worry, this is a dedication for you, sakerat, I'm glad you like it, nekoneko, don't worry, Annie comes back in this chapter, MyEternalSilence8, I agree, it would be awesome, Xx-Smile-its-Yaoi-xX, that's probably wise, Amerikan Pi, it's hard for anyone to be at Gilbert's level of awesome, but you are pretty close up there for reviewing, and finally, Soot, I wish I was too. I'm sorry if you reviewed and didn't get in there, it's because I started writing this before you reviewed for this chapter.**

**IMPORTANT!:My sister and I were talking. Who was Russia going to end up with. His relationship with Toris is purely sexual, she said that if there is no Franada, then there had to at least be LietPol. We were discussing it when she said "Why don't you let your readers decide for you." Granted I wasn't really paying attention and I misheard her and said "What! You decided for me!" She grabbed my shoulders and looked at me and said. "Yes Jessica, I have decided for you. Ivan will end up with... Sasuke!" Sorry, but I don't think that will happen, but that does bring me to the topic of I am completely clueless on who Russia will end up with. So you guys get to decide. Review me what you think on what pairings. Please! Now back to the story.**

"Oh my god!" Matthew snapped back to reality from his shock induced trance the second Gilbert's fist made impact with Francis's face. Alfred and Arthur just stood in shock.

"What is all this commotion!" Ivan stepped out from around the corner, he'd taken the elevator. Great, as if things couldn't get any worse. Everyone turned to look at him, what a scene that was. Arthur was still clasped onto Alfred's jacket, if he was wearing pants, he would be scared out of them, and Alfred wasn't much better. Tears were filling up in Matthew's eyes, although he wasn't sure if they were ones of joy or of fear or both. Gilbert gave that deer-in-headlights stare and Francis had a tiny trickle of blood running out of his nose. He wasn't hurt to terribly much, but he could play this to his advantage.

"Dad, this..." Alfred started, then thought for second "is totally what it looks like. But don't get mad at Gilbert, Francis provoked him! It was all his fault." Alfred pointed his finger in accusation to Francis. Ivan remained silent, one of the worst punishments a father could give, letting the children sweat it out before he went in for the kill.

_-Anna Sophia-_

Anna had had quite a time since she had last spoken to her husband 3 weeks ago. She could sleep with anyone she wanted and not have to be worried about anyone walking in on her. Life was bliss. Now, if she only could get Alfred here with her, then it would be perfect. There was a knocking at the door. She sighed and got up from the couch. What a shock when she answered it when there, standing in the doorway, was a young child no older than twelve.

"Excuse me miss, but I'm here to see my brother. I'm supposed to start living with him. This is the address I was sent to. My name is Peter. Peter Kirkland." The young boy stared at her with innocent eyes. Unfortunately for him, those didn't work on Anna. She frowned at the boy. Arthur didn't mention a little brother, or if he did, she hadn't been listening. "I'll be living here from now on." Now that was unacceptable. Without another word, she walked over to the phone and grabbed the number that Arthur had given her of where he would be staying.

-_Toris-_

Toris sat in the kitchen giggling, having just received a text from his good friend Feliks.

"_You like totally have to come the party with me! It won't be any fun without you, and I, like, need a date." _ Amazing how Feliks still managed to text "like" without even noticing it. Toris stared into space. He wanted to go, be with Feliks, have fun for once in a while, but he had recently lost a lot of money, and worked for Ivan as a "personal assistant" which was a job that required him to service the man in many ways. But what else could he do? There was no way that he would be able to get off work for this, a party with a friend. He slid up his cell to begin texting when he heard the phone ring. Instinctively, he put down his personal phone to go answer the other one.

"Hello?" He pressed the green talk button and spoke.

"_Is this the, um, Jones residence? Is there an Arthur Kirkland there. But if he's not available, then may I speak to a Mr. Alfred F. Jones_." The voice of a young British woman echoed through the phone line.

"Um, I'll see if he's available. To whom am I speaking too." Toris replied.

"_Anna Sophia, tell him I have some rather... pressing issues to discuss with him._" She answered. Well, maybe if the issue was big enough, Toris could escape for the night and go to party with Feliks. He took a deep breath and got ready to step into the commotion.

_-Main story-_

"Father. Please just say something." Matthew pleaded. Ivan opened his mouth to speak, but Toris interrupted.

"Excuse me, but Arthur, you have a phone call from a miss Anna Sophia. It seemed rather urgent." He politely stepped into the room. Arthur looked and Alfred and Alfred stared back. Most sane men wouldn't be very willing to talk about something "urgent" with their ex-wives, though they were technically still married, but an apparent angry Ivan seemed slightly more frightening. Slightly. Without a word, he and Alfred both hastily ran to the kitchen to grab the phone, though it was cordless.

"Hello?" Arthur gently pressed the phone to his ear. Anna recognized that voice.

"_You bastard! You have some explaining to do god dammit!_" It crossed Arthur's mind that maybe he would have been better suited staying back with Ivan.

**Sorry, it's short again. Musical practice you know. Two musicals opening in the same week. Busy Busy Busy. Anyway, I still would appreciate your reviews, especially if you have any ideas about who Russia should end up with. Like, seriously. Heh, I sounded like Poland just then. I'll update as soon as I can. **

**The average human body holds enough sulfur to kill all fleas on a dog, enough potassium to fire a toy cannon, enough carbon to make 900 pencils, enough fat to make seven bars of soap, and enough phosphorus to make 2,200 match heads. Lovely, isn't it?**


	14. What is this Feeling

**Disclaimer: yeah, I just totally won the lottery and bought Hetalia. Back to reality. Sorry I didn't write this week, I had 7 performances in 3 days and to top it all off, I sprained my ankle, yet still had to sing and dance on a sprained ankle. Oh well, I've had worse. Soccer season is almost here. Hopefully my ankle will be better by then.**

**Dedications: Totalnarutofangirl85, great job with your solo sis, Allykat001, I agree with you on the exwife thing *shivers*, usik4ever, thank you, I'm glad you like it, nekoneko, poor Sealand is right! MizuiroSnow, yeah really, isn't everyone one with Russia? Xx-smile-its-Yaoi-xX, I really appreciate your reviews, and your sick pen name, Miss Macabre Grey, are you suggesting Greece/Russia with the kitty thing? And last, but certainly not least, Amerikan Pi, your comment about Christmas in April and Finland made me laugh! Russia is very Russian, you are correct.**

**Warning: This chapter has some colorful language, Prius dissing, and minor badger abuse. You've been warned.**

**The magical whiteboard of joy and happiness is based on one that Jason used at the musical to make us smile.**

_ "Bastard! You've got some explaining to do god-dammit!"_ Arthur took a deep breath.

"Calm down Annie and explain to me what is going on." He replied.

_"Calm down? Calm down! How the hell could I calm down when there's some fucking kid in my doorway saying that he's your younger brother and has come to live with you!"_ Anna screeched through the phone. Arthur was about to respond when he realized what she had really said.

"My younger what!" His voice resounded through the halls, attracting the attention of the others. Arthur had never really got along with his younger brother, he was 11 when his mother had him, and they never really got along.

_"Don't yell in my ear!"_ Anna yelled back, ignoring the facts she'd been doing that exact thing the entire time.

"Is it that time of the month?" Arthur asked without thinking **(A/N Don't you just hate that question?)** A little bit of Alfred was rubbing off on him.

_"What did you just say! Fuck you. I'm coming over to drop off that brat right now!"_ Anna screamed, which Arthur took as a yes. Wait- what did she just say.

"Wait!" Arthur was cut off by a beep. He slumped onto the floor. Why does she have to come when there's this mess going on?

"What's wrong?" Lithuania asked as he walked into the room. He was abruptly pushed out of the way by an impatient Alfred, who had heard Arthur's scream and gotten worried.

"Oh nothing, just my life has turned into a bloody soap opera, my ex is on her way, and my troublesome kid brother showed up from England without any warning and to come live with me. Oh yeah, my life is just a basket of joy and puppies." Arthur sarcastically replied, gritting his teeth on the last bit.

"Anna's on her way?" Alfred stopped, sliding across the linoleum floor a little. Arthur nodded. "Well, you might want to put on some pants then." Arthur looked down at where the American man's eyes were pointing. For the umpteenth time, he forgot he was wearing just a towel. His face immediately turned bright red.

"Don't look there!" He yelled as he cover his area and scrambled to his feet, turning around in the process and started to the door.

"Hey, it's your fault." Alfred playfully accused. "Besides, you obviously forgot again, so you should be thanking me. Although..." Arthur stopped and turned his head to look at Alfred.

"Although what?" He asked, half expecting to regret it later.

"Nothing," Alfred chuckled. "You're just totally rocking that towel, you could make Anna regret ever cheating on her if you show up like that." Arthur got a weird feeling in his chest and ran out the door, blushing all the way.

_-Anna Sophia and Peter-_

"What are you doing lady?" Peter asked as Anna fetched her keys to her light blue Prius **(A/N: My orchestra teacher drives a light blue Prius. Tiffany suspects that he's secretly gay.)** while simultaneously fixing her lipstick. She stopped to glare at Peter.

"First of all, it's Miss Anna Sophia to you. Second of all, your older brother does not live here anymore, and neither will you. Now get in the car, we're going on a trip." She corrected as she led him to car. He stopped.

"Really? A Prius? You're not gonna toss me out on the corner the first chance you get, are you." He hesitated before entering the car.

"Nonsense, I'm just taking you to your brother. Now hold my purse while I fix my mascara and we'll be off." Anna replied as she tossed her Coach knock-off at Peter. How had his older brother put up with this?

_-Main Story-_

Arthur ran past the chaos in the entryway, holding his head down so no one will see his new shade. But Francis happened to have this 6th sense that allowed him to sense infatuation, like how some people can see people's waves. And Arthur was giving off the same waves as a 15 year-old girl with a crush. And then Alfred walked out, giving off some questionable waves too.

"What's wrong with him?" Matthew asked, eager to change the subject from his complicated love life.

"His ex is coming over to drop off his little brother whom he apparently hasn't seen in years, nor does he care to. I can't wait until the divorce finally goes through." Alfred nonchalantly answered.

"He got married! What gender?" Francis exclaimed, asking a completely relevant question.

"Female." Alfred responded, glaring at the Frenchman. Francis stepped back.

"No way! You're boyfriend has a wife!" Gilbert spazzed. Francis glared at him.

"Why don't you just go poke a badger with a spoon or something!" He rudely suggested.

"No thank you, last time I did that I had to go to the emergency room and get a rabies shot. German badgers are vicious." Gilbert retorted.

"No comment."

_-A substantial amount of time later-_

"Calm down and stop pacing." Alfred requested. Arthur had reluctantly put on a pair of jeans and a flashy designer blazer, as Alfred had advised his to wear.

"I'm sorry, but I haven't seen Peter in years. What if he thinks I'm a total failure. He probably hates me." Arthur worried. Alfred put his hand on Arthur's shoulder. He got that weird flip-flop feeling in his chest again.

"He won't think that though! You are so not a failure, and I don't see how anyone could hate you." Alfred comforted, causing Arthur's face to feel hot. What was wrong with him? Why can't he get Alfred off his mind? What is this feeling? And here he goes, asking himself a bunch of useless questions that he has no answer for.

"You're just saying that." He turned his head so Alfred wouldn't see his blush.

"No, really. God, you are so insecure." Alfred chuckled. Arthur stayed quiet, afraid he wouldn't be able to find his voice if he chose to talk. Why was he feeling like this. Was this... love? No. No way! After a couple seconds of silence, Alfred decided to change the subject. "So... I was thinking of getting contacts." Arthur quickly found his voice and turned to look at Alfred.

"No way! Glasses suit you. They make you look..." He stopped himself. What was he saying. What was he going to say? Why was he acting like this? Seriously, what up with the questions!

"They make me look what?" Alfred smirked. Arthur turned back around. This was bad.

"N-nothing." He stuttered.

"They make me look nothing? That makes no sense." Alfred teased. "Be cle- what are you doing!" He turned to the top of the stairway, where Gilbert stood at the top of the stairway hiding behind a plant with a whiteboard, staring down at the two. He scribbled something onto the board.

_'I'm spying on you guys. Shh'_ It read.

"Are you stupid! We can see you!" Arthur yelled, having turned too see the sign. Gilbert grabbed the marker and began to write again.

_'I wanted to see Al's boyfriend's wife'_

"My name is Arthur!" He replied, then after an awkward silence added "And I'm, um, not his boyfriend." Gilbert grabbed his board again.

_'Right...'_ Just then, they heard the slam of car doors. Arthur took a look out the window.

"Is she here?" Alfred asked.

"Yeah, and she took the Prius. That means she means business." The shorter man panicked. "Alright, let's make it look we haven't been waiting for her!" Gilbert had something to say about the matter.

_'Man, a Prius? No wonder you guys broke up.'_ Arthur glared at him.

"Hey! A Prius is very environmentally conscious car!" Arthur retorted, when Alfred grabbed his arm and dragged him to the couch, the one that was facing Gilbert. "Hey!"

"Act natural." He whispered. The doorbell rang. Arthur got up, but Alfred put out his hand to stop him. "Toris will get it." Arthur nodded and sat back down unnaturally close to Alfred.

"I'll be right there." A voice came from the kitchen as if on cue.

"Smile." Alfred half-suggested-half-ordered.

"I don't think I can." Arthur whispered. Gilbert had an idea. His marker moved furiously.

_'Look I'm a deer'_ Gilbert wrote out of a speech bubble. He drew a deer's body and put his face over it so it looked like his head was on a deers body **(A/N Jason did this one during my solo and I almost started laughing into the microphone) **Arthur giggled.

"See, it's easy!" Alfred patted Arthur on the head. They stayed quiet for a second before bursting out into laughter. Toris in the meantime ran to the door.

"Sorry to make you wait ma'am." He panted.

"Arthur! I'm so glad to see you!" Peter yelled as he ran to Arthur, quickly getting over his anger after spending half an hour in a small car with Anna. Arthur was pleasantly surprised.

"I'm just dropping him off. Hi Alfred!" She quickly changed her attitude when she saw Alfred sitting there. "How have you been. You look great." She didn't notice Gilbert writing on the whiteboard.

_'Dude, she is such a creeper!' _Arthur could barely contain his laughter.

"Uh, thank you." Alfred replied.

"Brother, you're wife is a really scary lady!" Peter added in. Anna felt a twinge of anger and annoyance, but kept up her facade of sweetness. Gilbert had something to say about Peter's comment.

_'Ha! I love your brother!'_

"Well, I have to go, I've got a job interview tomorrow and need to be well rested." Anna smiled as she turned to go back to her Prius. "See you soon." She added, directed to Alfred of course.

_'Right back at ya bitch'_ Gilbert responded with his whiteboard.

"Hey Al, do you know I put my copy of- what's with the kid?" Matthew entered from the kitchen.

"Oh, uh..." Arthur had a lot of explaining to do.

** Alright, this is the longest chapter. My ankle is killing me! Sorry for making you guys wait. I had this great conversation with my friends Nathan (He played the Dodo bird), Kristen (another rock lobster), and Kally (Small Alice) about locking people in closets. Any Gleeks out in the reading audience today? I'm so happy I can finally start watching again, now that I'm not busy. But I'm really sad the musicals are over. It was fun watching the guys getting their make up done. Oh well, enjoy another crackish fact dedicated to our awesome performance of Alice in Wonderland.**

** Lewis Carroll was a mathematics professor at Oxford University. After reading _Alice in Wonderland_, Queen Victoria sent a letter to him asking for another of his books to read. Carroll sent her a book on Algebra.**


	15. Brothers

**Disclaimer: I own Hetalia not! Yeah, that works. Sorry about the late update again, I've kind of had a suckish week. But I'm back to, well, I can't really say normal because I don't have a normal, but back to hyperactive fanfic writing Jessica! Okay! That is established! An dI finally got Skype! I can RP with my sister and friends. And there was much rejoicing. Yea.**

**Apology: I am so super sorry that I accidentally called Toris Lithuania in the last chapter. For those of you who are like me and have to go back and see what I am talking about, come on, you know who you are, don't be ashamed of it. Anyway, it's in the 9th paragraph thing. Alright, moving on.**

**Dedications: totalnarutofangirl, thank you for pointing that out, and quack. Allykat001, I want friends like that! I would so do that. Asdfg123456, I love Prussia too, so much. Soot, what are you talking about, Gilbert is always right, everything else is just wrong. Amerikan Pi, I have a strange infatuation with decimals too, it makes life 5.3684 times more fun. Roksashoe, I'm so glad you started reading. I can't handle alcohol at all, though I only drink it at communion, and that makes me a little woozy. For me, it's just one te-FLOOR! 05, you penname hurts my head, but Peter is pretty sick.**

**HAPPY WIZARD INDEPENDANCE DAY! **

"So let me get this straight. You just asked mom and she shipped you off to live with me! What kind of parents do we have!" Arthur rose to his feet after Peter explained his story.

"It's your fault anyway. If you hadn't caused them so much grief when you were a teenager, then maybe they wouldn't have been so eager to ship me off before I teenager. It was either this or boarding school!" Peter huffed. "Take some personal responsibility. If you weren't such a delinquent, we wouldn't be in this mess." The surrounding men gasped, which was everyone but Ivan, working on business, the wholesome kind because Toris was also there.

"No way! You used to be a delinquent?" Alfred inquired, causing a pinkish tint to cover Arthur's cheeks. He wasn't proud of his delinquent days, he was embarrassed that they even happened.

"So what if I was a delinquent as a child. I've made a life for myself past that." Arthur replied. "It's like they say. Life gave me lemons so I made lemonade." The crowd nodded except Gilbert.

"Dude, unless life also handed you some sugar and water, you're lemonade's gonna suck." Gilbert exclaimed. Arthur glared at him.

"Well I don't know about the water, but I've found my sugar right here." Francis grabbed Matthew and pulled the confused child closer to him.

"Wow. That was really cheesy." Alfred commented.

"No shit! And Matthew belongs with me!" Gilbert fought, jumping to his feet.

"No way! Matthew is mine now!" Francis yelled, following Gilbert's example.

"Back off pretty boy, before you get hurt."

"I wouldn't be so worried about myself."

"Oh someone better hold me back!"  
"Boys! Boys!" Peter broke in. "What are you talking about? You're all men. And men can't be together, can they? How would that work anyway?" Gilbert strayed from his quarrel to go explain it to Peter.

"Well, when two people wuv each other vewy much."

"Gilbert!" Arthur interrupted. "I don't need you to give my little brother the sex talk."

"Sex talk!?" Peter exclaimed. "Two guys can have sex!?"

"Well sure." Francis felt a little left out not being the center of attention. "Ask your brother, he's like that too, I would know."

"WHAT!" Peter yelled.

"Thank you, Francis." Arthur sarcastically stated, using his hands to convey his point. "Because I just needed you to tell everyone. You know, I have an idea. Why don't you just tell the entire world that 'Hey! My name is Francis Bonnefoy and I bloody fucked Arthur Kirkland.' Yeah, that would be great for my career."

"First of all, I would not say that I 'bloody fucked you'" Francis did his best imitation British accent, which was actually not that bad. "I would say that I 'made love to you,' because that is the French way, even though it's essentially the same thing. And second of all, you're career is fine since you are currently screwing the bosses son, although technically he'd be screwing you since are always on botto-"

"Just shut up!" Arthur yelled. He took a deep breath. "Even though Annie and I hate each other, legally, we are still married. And I will remain abstinent until we are no longer such."

"Sorry Alfred. I'm not quite sure what abstinent exactly means, but I think it means you won't be getting any tonight." Gilbert felt as if Alfred needed comforting and attempted to do so.

"Um, excuse me. Twelve year old in the room who would rather not hear about other guys sex lives." Peter drew attention back to himself. He yawned. "Listen, it's getting late and I had a long plane ride. Where can I sleep?"

"Oh, um, Toris, can you bring Peter to Matthew's old room?" Alfred asked. Toris nodded, eager to get out of the chaos.

"Well, I guess I should hit the hay too. Come on, Frenchy, you're rooming with me, I'm not gonna let you near Matthew tonight." Gilbert grabbed the Frenchman by the collar. Francis swatted his hand away, but complied.

"Frenchy? Wow. Haven't heard that one before." He answered bitterly as he walked away with Gilbert. Soon, all who were left were Alfred, Arthur, and Matthew.

"Well, I think you have some talking to do with your brother." Arthur slowly backed out of the room before sprinting up the stairs. Two left.

"I think-" Matthew started

"Wait!" Alfred grabbed his shoulder. "I need to talk to you, as your older brother."

"Alfred..."

"Mattie. I know something is wrong. I haven't seen you this bothered since we watched Bambi together as kids." Alfred attempted to be soothing.

"I was not bothered by Bambi." Matthew defended.

"Honey, you were blubbering like a baby when the hunters shot Bambi's mom." Alfred replied.

"So what!" Matthew burst. "Don't I get to act for once like you do every fucking day! All my life, I've always been Alfred's dorky brother. Don't I get love! Francis is great to me and Gilbert..." He paused as the tears rolled down his face. He dropped his head into his hands. "I just don't know what to do. Alfred, just, help me out. Please." The first thing that came to Alfred's mind was to tell his younger brother to kick Francis to the curb, but he stopped himself. He knew how much Matthew loved Gilbert, and to not drop everything and take him back immediately meant that he had some serious feelings for Francis, and he couldn't deny that

"Matthew, this isn't something that I can tell you to do." He began, placing an arm around Matthew. "This is something that you have to decide for yourself. But, I swear, I will be there with you the entire time, holding your hand. And I will support whatever decision you make." And with that, he pulled Matthew closer, giving him a shoulder to cry on, and ending up crying himself. Love was such a beautiful thing, but it also hurt more than anything that you could imagine. And though the two brothers had completely different situations, they would always be brothers, and always had each other to cry with.

_Peter's room_

Peter had settled into bed, but he just couldn't sleep. The day had started off in anticipation, but that anticipation he felt earlier felt like it was years ago. His brother had changed so much from the last time he saw him, but he was still the same Peter Kirkland as he had always been. He heard a knock on his door.

"Come in." He answered. He expected to see Toris come on in to check on him, he was very nice, but instead, Arthur came in instead. "Brother?"

"Peter." Arthur walked over and sat on the edge of the bed next to him like his parents used to. "Peter, I know I haven't always been the ideal older brother but... I want to make things better. I may not be able to make up for the last 5 years I wasn't there, but I'm gonna try to be the best big brother ever."

"Arthur?" Was he dreaming? Arthur never cared for him before. He changed indeed.

"I've seen how Matthew and Alfred treat each other, and I want to be like that like you. I'm not really good at this, but if you ever need to talk or something, I'm always available. Just, I want to be there for you." Arthur rubbed his head. Peter smiled and wrapped his arms around Arthur. Arthur returned the favor. Things were changing. Whether or not it was for the better was unknown, but if nothing ever changed, then we would never know if it would be for the better.

** Been catching up on gLee this weekend too. I love Kurt, he is such a unique character, not to mention totally flamboyantly gay. And he can sing really well. My ankle is getting better, so no more crutches for me! So much brotherly love in this chapter, I hoped you guys liked it. By the way, for the future readers, I appreciate reviews at anytime for any chapter, I know I sometimes get a little uncomfortable about reviewing on a previous chapter or when it's been a couple days from the post, but I really appreciate all reviews, so please review. Now, on a lighter note, how about a fun fact.**

** Butterflies taste with their feet. Chew on that... I'm sorry, that was really bad, see you when I update next!**


	16. I Like Coffee I Like Tea

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. I'm sick, guys. Sigh, but I'm getting better and can type again. I've had a little bit of... drama the last week, but I'm back and... well, I'm back. I had anime prom on Saturday, I went as Misa and my older sister went as Hungary. There was literal Misa-bashing. With a frying pan. There was also people cosplaying America and England and we actually stalked them and they had not 1, not 2, but 3 stage kisses! The next day I had an ice show. Evan Lysacek didn't show up, but it was fine. We had really great seats! Now, onto dedications.**

**Dedications: Starting off, as is customary, my sister: totalnarutofangirl85! Damn straight Gilbert was awesome. Lightning-Destructive-Light, I've never been really good at spelling, but I'm pretty sure lol is one word. Or is it three? Umm, moving on! NajikaIce, I'm glad you thought it was adorable, I, uh, forgot what I was gonna say. Sorry. Xx-Smile-its-Yaoi-xX. Bwahaha. I just can't get enough of your name. It's amazing. No, it's YAOI! Nekoneko, I might have to take your advice and have a Delinquent!England flashback scene. I love how they put an exclamation point there. Soot, thanks! But seriously, lemonade is not lemonade unless there is sugar and water. Then it's just lemon juice and tastes really bad. ImmortalKiky, alright, I'll write more right now. Sakerat, daddy Ivan is pretty BA, isn't he. Amerikan Pi, I am so glad that you care about authors... and... yeah, I never much liked Bambi as a child. I thought it was boring. Finally, TheSarcasticUchihaFan, I also hated how he treated him in the anime. On to story!**

Arthur put down his pen and dream journal. He was bothered by another dream of unicorns and Alfred. They were getting so troublesome. A grown man shouldn't be having dreams about unicorns! He threw the covers off the bed he'd so gotten used to sleeping in and stepped into his slippers. The floor could be so cold in the morning. His daily routine had changed since he moved in with Alfred. He would wake up, curse at how girly his dream had been while writing about it in his journal, then hop out of bed and go get a freshly brewed cup of tea, courtesy of Toris. Soon after that, Alfred would hop down the stairs, as perky as he always was, and they would start planning the days activities, which normally involved Alfred following Arthur to work and then going out for burgers afterwords. But it was the weekend again, and no doubt Alfred had some hair-brained scheme planned for him and Peter to reconnect. He was thoughtful like that.

"Ah, good morning Arthur." Toris greeted him as he walked into the kitchen. Much to his surprise, Alfred was already sitting there, sipping... was that tea? Alfred never drank tea!

"Alfred, what is that you're drinking." Arthur exclaimed in shock.

Alfred got unnaturally flustered. "Oh, uh, well. You seem to like tea so much- though I can't see why- so I thought I would try some." He rubbed the back of his head. Arthur smiled. Alfred was an idiot, but he was his idiot.

"How do you like it?" Arthur asked, chuckling while he spoke.

"It tastes like someone washed their hands in it." Alfred joined in. Arthur stopped and glared at him.

"Well, maybe your bad taste is a result of all that McDonalds you eat." Arthur took a sip of his tea. Alfred stopped laughing. The front door slammed.

"Hello! I'm, like, totally here now! You can, like, stop crying." A voice cried from the entryway.

"Feliks! Is that you?" Toris dropped a tray of biscuits in shock.

"Totally! Liet, you, like, would not believe how, like, lonely I have been since you started working here. You totally need to, like, move back in with me." Feliks replied. There was a loud crash. "Ow! Supply closet. Totally uncool."

"Oh, Feliks." Toris ran out to find the perky blonde. Arthur leaned towards Alfred.

"Alfred, why does, um, Feliks, call Toris Liet." He whispered.

"Same reason he says 'like' every other word. Because he's Feliks." Alfred answered. The answer was good enough for Arthur, he had met a few... unique characters the last couple of days.

"Oi, whatcha guys whispering about. Got a dirty little secret." Gilbert came rushing into the kitchen from the back entrance, Francis slowly following him, looking like a ghost of his former self. Though if you ever ask him, Arthur would tell you that he hates Francis with a passion that burns brighter than the sun, but he really did have a deeply embedded caring for the man.

"Francis! What's the matter!" Arthur jumped to his feet. There seemed to be a sickly purple aura surrounding him.

"This idiot kept me up all night. He talks in his sleep." Francis held his head in his hands. "In German. I don't know what he said and I felt my IQ dropping." Arthur sighed.

"Oh, let me get you some hot tea! It always makes me feel better when I had a bad night's sleep." Arthur ran to pour him some Earl Grey and ran it over to Francis.

"Thanks." Arthur gently laid his hand on Francis's forehead.

"Oh dear! I think you have a fever!" He exclaimed.

"Are you jealous." Alfred snapped his head away from the two to find Gilbert had moved to sit right next to him.

"Gilbert! You startled me!" Alfred responded. "But wait, why would I be jealous."

"Not to be blunt, but I think that Frenchy's putting the moves on your boyfriend." Gilbert whispered.

"How is that not blunt!" Alfred half-whispered back. "Arthur would never go back to that bastard, he's just maternal- er, paternal." Gilbert gave a half smile.

"Whatever you say." He turned his glance back to Francis and Arthur. "But I don't know. It looks like Francis is working pretty fast, and he almost stole Matthew from me. And Matthew and I were openly going out. You guys act like two teenagers that won't admit they're in love with each other. I'd watch your back, because unless you start moving faster, you're gonna lose him." And with that, Gilbert got up and left. **(A/N: I felt the dramatic music that they have in things like Glee would fit nicely here)**

_-Feliks and Toris-_

"Feliks! Oh, what did you do to yourself." Toris ran towards Feliks dragged him out of the rubble from the overfilled supply closet. He laid his head in his lap. Feliks opened his eyes.

"Whoa, Liet, you're, like, wearing an apron." Feliks smiled. Toris rolled his eyes. "You, like, have a really comfortable lap."

"Feliks, what are you doing here." Toris propped up the blonde. Feliks fidgeted until he was kneeling across from Toris.

"I came to, like, get you back. It's been so totally boring without you." Feliks whined.

"I'm sorry, but I can't leave." The brunette replied.

"But-" Feliks pouted. Toris put a finger to the other man's lips.

"Don't worry. I'll see what I can do, and maybe I'll be able to go over to your house tonight. Just the two of us, like old times." He replied.

"Wait! Toris, you're like that too?" Peter exclaimed from the bottom stair.

"Peter! I forgot you were here!" Toris jumped when he heard the boy's voice. Gilbert stepped behind him.

"Huh, you didn't know that?" Gilbert asked. Not everyone had such a finely tuned gaydar as he did. "But I do have a question for you."

"Oh, um yeah." Toris replied.

"Uh, but it better, like, not be one of those, like, word problems. I, like, totally suck at those." Poland got to his feet too. It didn't take a genius to figure out he was gay by his outfit. But that's a completely different story.

"Nothing of the sort." Gilbert smirked. "I look at you two and have to wonder, which one of you is on top?"

"Dwah!"

**Alright, drama with a touch of comedy. I changed the rating because, though it may change, this doesn't really seem like M material at the time. But I have one important question for you guys.**

** With Liet and Poland, who's the uke? Is it Toris? Is it Feliks? Do they take turns? The world may never know for sure, however, in this fanfic, the choice is yours. So, review to vote, and the results will be up in the next chapter. I look forward to being enlightened.**

**The Hollywood sign originally read "Hollywoodland" Really rolls of the tongue, doesn't it.**


	17. Attack of the Angry Corn People

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. I spend another day sick at home, so I think I'll have to miss soccer practice tonight again. I'll miss school tomorrow too, but I hope I'll be back on Friday. My friend Maddy made me this wonderful card featuring Prussia and Romano. It was beautiful. By the way, I'm sorry I accidentally posted the wrong chapter, but I fixed it, though the people who have this on alert got a link to it in the email. So, I apologize.**

**Dedications: Totalnarutofangirl85, you know I like to let the readers decide. Kalikuvaz, thank you for voting and I love the end emoticon. PianoslLove, I love that you like the series and thanks so much for calling me a talented author. I actually think it's amazing that your dad drives a prius. KatieKatAnimelover, I do like the whole concept of Alfred going to work with Arthur, because he'd be lonely otherwise. Sakerat, it's okay, it took my sister a while to realize that too. Nekoneko, everybody loves America, according to him. Dramatic music always makes everything better. Although people tend to get annoyed when you add theme music to their misfortune. Just saying. Nightwing99 I, like, totally love that you voted. Soot, Gilbert always makes everything more awesome. ..Blue, glad you picked that up, I used to jump rope everyday at recess back in elementary school. Amerikan Pi, thank you for using saying please, and for playing the music at the end.**

**The votes are in: Poland and Lithuania: take turns on top!**

**PS: There are a lot of Alfred's thoughts in here, so if you read anything that you think Alfred would think, he probably did and you are totally a mind reader. However, if you are reading this and it is about a happy magical muffin being attacked by angry corn people, then this is the wrong story, and I suggest getting a doctor because something is seriously wrong with your brain. On to the story.**

"Arthur, this is very good tea. Did you make it?" Francis asked as Arthur grabbed a dish towel and dampened it with some cool water.

"No, Toris did." Arthur answered, he didn't seem to get that Francis seemed to be hitting on him. He laid the wet cloth on Francis's head. "Honestly, you should really get back to bed." Stupid Arthur, don't talk to Francis about beds, he'll try to get in one with you! Alfred had to stop this train before it heads straight to disaster. He hopped up and hustled over to Arthur.

"Haha, yeah. So, Arthur, I was thinking, maybe for today's activity, we could, uh." Alfred pondered what he was going to say. "There's a new pirate movie at the movie theater. I think Peter might like to see it." Pure genius. Alfred was dancing on the inside about how smart he was. Arthur liked pirates, didn't he. He seemed to dream about them a lot.

"Oh, uh, a pirate movie." Arthur nervously replied. He quickly bit his lip and looked around, as if he was trying to think of something. "Thanks, but I, uh, think that I should, um, stay here and take care of Francis." Something was fishy. Arthur hated Francis, and as far as he was concerned, that French bastard could go and die in a hole. So why would he want to help him?

"Oh, Arthur, you are just too kind." Francis complimented. Damn that man for being so charming. "But, you really should spend the day with your young brother. You need not worry about me." The air seemed to sparkle around the man as he flipped his hair out of his face without using his hands. He was good. I mean, let's face it, the dude could make even the straightest guys go gay.

"Nonsense." Arthur shook his head.

"No, I insist, I'll have Matthew care for me, you spend some time with your brother. Besides, I seem to remember you used to loved pirates back when you lived in England." Francis responded. Alright, Alfred remembered what he saw in that Sherlock Holmes movie. To decide if Francis is a threat to him, he needed to review his information. Let's see, so it was pretty clear that Francis and Arthur went out, and it must have been back in England, because Arthur was pretty keen on not cheating on his wife. Francis liked Matthew, but was pretty horny and would fuck Arthur without a doubt if he had a chance. Arthur didn't seem very interested in him, but Arthur tended to surprise... Oh crap, Francis is a total danger to his plan.

"I could call a doctor if you need." Alfred added in, pretending that he actually cared about the Frenchman.

"Oh no, I just need some rest." Francis rose to his feet. "Go to the movie with Alfred and Peter." Without another room, he walked to stairs and back to his room. Did Francis just help him, or was he planning something even more devious?

"Well, we best go get Peter, going to the movie would be useless." Alfred broke the silence. Arthur abruptly turned his head to Alfred, then sighed in relief. What was going on with him.

"Yes, I suppose we should." He replied. Alfred grabbed Arthur's hand, just to test things. He didn't pull it away. Something was wrong with Arthur, he was so spunky, even in the mornings.

"Hey Arthur, is something matter?" Alfred had a concerned tone about him.

"Oh, uh, I'm fine, let's just go to the movie." Arthur answered, still seeming a little bit spacey. He turned for the back door.

"Um, aren't you forgetting something. A little over 4 feet, blonde hair, bushy eyebrows, addresses you as his big brother." Alfred tapped him on the shoulder and reminded him about the real reason they were going to this movie.

"Ah, yes! Peter..." Arthur responded.

"And maybe we should put on some clothing, I don't know about you, but I much prefer to-"

"Alright, alright already!" Arthur snatched his hand away. "Let's just go wake up Peter." Alfred and Arthur walked over to the door leading to the entryway.

"What kind of question is that!" Toris exclaimed. Alfred looked at him and Feliks, Feliks dressed in something pink and frilly, and then to Gilbert, standing right behind Peter, who was fully clad in some cotton plaid pajamas and slippers just like Arthur's, the ones with the British flag on them.

"A totally legitimate one!" Gilbert replied. "You guys both seem like the kind of people who would be on bottom." Toris turned a bright shade of red.

"We both, like, totally take turns on top." Feliks answered.

"Feliks!" Toris yelped in embarrassment.

"Liet." The frilly blonde mimicked. "What's the matter with that. Are you, like, embarrassed of me? Oh my gosh, do you, like, hate me!" The boy started cry.

"N-no, not at all, Feliks!" Toris panicked. Feliks began to cry harder.

"No, you do! You, like, totally hate me!" He howled.

"Feliks, I love you!" He comforted. The Polish man stopped crying.

"You do?" He asked, tears still streaming from his eyes.

"Of course I do." The Lithuanian smiled. Almost in slow motion, Feliks jumped up and grabbed Toris into a tight hug.

"Aw, I, like, love you too!" The began crying again. Man, was this guy melodramatic or what.

"That's bizarre." Peter commented at the fruity display of affection in front of him. Gilbert laughed and put his arm on the young boys head.

"Stick with me, kid." The albino giggled. "I've got some yaoi manga Kiku gave me that would knock your socks off!" He put his arm around Peter and led him up the stairs.

"But I'm not wearing socks." Peter replied. "And by the way, what's yaoi?"

"You can ask Frenchy that, he'll give you an answer you'll never forget." Alfred looked at them, then to Feliks and Toris, and then finally at Arthur. He was spacing out again. Alfred couldn't help himself anymore. He leaned in and kissed Arthur.

**Sorry, it ends there. I know, I know, I'm evil. But hey, I updated super quick, and I'll update even sooner next time, depending on when my internet is back up. You can check out my friends 'Get well soon' card on deviantart under kiripop, that's her username. Here's a preview of the next chapter:**

** What started out as a friendly trip to the movies turns into a shocking trip down memory lane. Arthur reveals his family's dark pirate past. Alfred kisses Arthur, but how will Arthur react. And will Peter ever find out what 'yaoi' is. All this and more in the next installment of _It All Started With a Shot of Tequila_! Don't miss it!**

** In Shakespeare's _Julius Caesar_, there is a reference to a clock striking, but clocks weren't invented until at least 1000 years after Caesar's death.**


	18. The Curse of Captain Kirkland

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. Sorry it's been a while. I had SpringCon last Sunday, a soccer game on Monday, which we lost. Tuesday, I was working from 6 to 9, chamber orchestra rehearsal and another soccer game on Wednesday, we again lost, orchestra concert on Thursday, was working again on Friday, and all day Saturday, and spend most of the day Sunday making an AMV. I had school today, a party afterwords for the literary arts magazine members, which our adviser didn't show up for, so we just walked to the park and ate brownies. I also have skills for soccer, which is hard to explain, so I won't. Wow, if that wasn't a run on sentence, I don't know what is.**

**Dedications: Totalnarutofangirl85, no, you cannot draw on my face, mom and dad got really angry the last time you did. Sakerat, it's okay, moms rock! And I'm sure that your face was probably very amusing and I wish I could have seen it. Nekoneko, worry not, Prussia will rescue him, he always does, and great song. Darkcat Smith, you have a point, Lithuania is rather girly-looking. Soot, it is rare that Arthur is out of it, but it occasionally happens. I hope it went well with your teacher. Blue Seer, just tellin' it like it is. And PianoIsLove, no thank you for reading, I love reviews.**

Alfred realized what he had done and quickly pulled back from the kiss. He had let his feeling get the best of him and possibly ruined his whole relationship with Alfred. He wanted to just ease into the romance, have Arthur see how caring he really was, and then they would live happily ever after. Well, it worked in his mind. Arthur may have out of it before, but he was wide awake now. Alfred braced himself for a slap, but it didn't come.

"Oh my, what have I done?" Arthur asked himself, then turned to Alfred. "What have you done! You just kissed me! You just bloody kissed me!" Alfred looked around, for an idea of what to do to save himself. He saw a little book on the table. That was it!

"Why are you yelling at me, this is your dream!" He responded. Arthur looked at him curiously.

"What? This is a dream?" Arthur cocked his head to the left. Damn, he was so cute! But Alfred couldn't be bothered by that, he had to think of something.

"Of course. Really, would the real Alfred wouldn't drink tea, now would he." Alfred grabbed the tea and took a large sip of it. It was terrible, but he had to do it. He clenched his eyes at the taste, but managed to make it out remotely like he liked it. "De-delicious tea."

"Oh, well, the real Alfred wouldn't drink tea, but this seems too realistic to be a dream." Arthur pondered it for a moment when Bam! He fell into Alfred's arms, unconscious. Behind him was standing Gilbert, holding a frying pan above where Arthur's head was.

"You can thank me later." Gilbert made a flipping motion with his head, but he didn't have long enough hair to actually flip his hair.

"What did you do!" Alfred exclaimed, still holding Arthur in his arms.

"I hit him on the head with a frying pan." The German man bluntly stated. "It's a little trick I learned from this girl I knew when I was a kid. She beat me up daily." Alfred to a deep breath.

"I have nothing to say to that. Now, come on, let's take sleeping beauty here back to his bed so maybe he might believe that he was actually asleep." Alfred stuck his arms under Arthur's legs and carried him to his bed bridal style. And all in good time, Arthur would be awake, and he would be joining him there. All in good time.

_-A couple hours later, at the movie theater-_

Alfred's plan had worked and Arthur believed that he was dreaming, though he had no idea why he woke up with a splitting headache. They had rescued Peter and Matthew from Francis, Gilbert butted in before Francis could do anything. They managed to make it there and buy the tickets without any problems, but that was before they made it to the snack bar.

"Oh my god. Look at all that candy!" Alfred's eyes lit up at the sight. It wasn't anything fancy, but Alfred had not been to a commoner movie theater before, though he had gone to some premiers before. He ran right up to the counter and began ordering assorted goodies.

"Bloody hell, Alfred. Are you going to order the entire supply?" He questioned, strangely endeared by Alfred's childlike glow.

"No, not the Raisinettes. They're just poser candies." Alfred turned around with an armful of candy. Arthur sighed.

"Come on, guys. The movie will start soon." Peter tugged on Arthur's sleeve. Damn it, Peter was so adorable. Arthur followed after him, taking occasional glances back at Alfred, he foresaw one wicked sugar high in that guy's future. But what he can't foresee is how he will handle a pirate movie. It all started a couple years ago, when he was just 17. The day he left home for good...

_-Flashback: May 23rd, 2004-_

_ Arthur ran toward the bomb shelter door. Their house was so old, it was built back during the war and still had an old bomb shelter. They now used it for storage. He limped in ever so quietly, trying not to let his parents know he was there. They would call the cops if they saw him as he was now. He had just been in a fight. He would've won, but the guy had back up. And 3 against 1 is just not fair! At least, that's what he told them. He knew they kept bandages in there. He was dripping blood, he had a cut across his face that could best use stitches, and was holding his arm close to his side, keeping it away from anything that might hit is and make it hurt even more. His legs shook as he walked, but, despite the condition he was in, he wouldn't let anyone help him. It was a sign of weakness, and he wouldn't stand for that. He could barely stand now._

_ "Damn bastard. I swear, next time I see that bloody wanker, I'm going kick his fucking sorry arse all the way to hell." Arthur muttered. Amazing how an accent could take such vulgar language and make it sound somewhat acceptable. He dug through boxes until he found the old cloth bandages. He'd gotten very good at taking care of his own injuries, so he wrapped himself up in no time. But his parents would still freak out if they saw him even like this, so he would have to sleep in the park again tonight. Not that it really mattered, at least once a week he was either too injured or too drunk to go home, so he slept on the bench. It was actually kind of funny when the people walking through the park see him and give him those looks that resembles the one a person gives a dead puppy. Pity with an obvious hint of disgust. He looked quite a bit younger than he really was, a fatal flaw of his that occasional came to his advantage when he needed money. All he needed to do was give some puppy-dog eyes and say that his parents got into some sort of accident and blah blah blah, he didn't really care what he was saying, and chaching! Devious, huh. He wasn't known as Devil Kirkland for nothing._

_ He turned to head to the door, when something got in his way. He tumbled to the ground, cursing all the way. The floor of the bomb shelter was hard, sending a painful sensation to roar through his body. He twisted around to see what had tripped him. It was just an dusty old leather-bound book. He tried to get back to his feet, but his body would let him. He sighed and picked up the book. The pages were old and yellow, a lot of them stained with something he could only identify as tea. The writing was very flowery, but also resembled angry lines of murderous intent. Just looking at it made Arthur uncomfortable, like someone was staring at him. He turned to a random page and read. _

_ It spoke as Captain Arthur Kirkland, one that came many years before. He was a pirate, and from what Arthur could tell, a pretty notable one at that. He spoke of curses, one for this one treasure he was seeking. The legend says that the curse would leave the bearer alone, losing his touch with people, causing them to have some sort of cosmic hate for them. Anyone else of the same bloodline of him that shared his birth name would suffer the same fate. But Captain Kirkland didn't believe that shit entirely, he couldn't care less if people hated him, so he went anyway. Arthur skipped a couple pages, they were boring, just a couple people dying of scurvy and whatnot. Boring! Finally found the page when Captain Kirkland found the treasure. Arthur felt a strange sense of pride at his namesake's accomplishment. He couldn't wait until he proved the curse wrong._

_ But the next page wasn't like what Arthur expected. Not at all. Though some of the words were blocked out by blood stains, he managed to understand a little of it. Captain Kirkland's crew had turned against him, and he had run until he found his lover, the only women on board, the one that had carried his only son, who was 5 now. He tried to explain to her what happened, and she as always listened intently. Something happened, it was blocked out by a drop of blood, and the next thing Arthur knew, Captain Kirkland's lover's, he now figured out her name was Annette, deep blue eyes turned glossy and she approached him with a knife. He there was some more blood and then Captain Kirkland said something about giving his captain's log to his son to pass on. The log then stopped. Arthur could only assume that meant Captain Kirkland had died._

_ Arthur swallowed audibly. He didn't believe any of this stuff, no, not at all. He tried to console himself, telling him it was just a coincidence. Sure, a lot of people hated him, but that meant nothing, he was an ass a lot of the time. So was Captain Kirkland. He dropped the book, and then it opened to a page after that page. Someone had written a date, nearly a hundred years after Captain Kirkland ended his log. In big, messy letters, something was written in blood. It read 'The Curse is real! ~Arthur Kirklan-' it let off at the end. Ignoring the pain, Arthur rose to his feet and fled, curiously grabbing the journal. He had to leave, get away from his messed up family, and maybe even that curse. He should stay away from dangerous people, lest he want to get murdered. Then he ran into Francis, and the rest... he didn't want to get into._

_-Back to the present: In the movie theater-_

"Arthur! The movie is over!" Arthur jolted back to reality when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Oh, um, yeah." Arthur got up and followed, but his head was still trapped in his vivid memory. He remembered an entry he had read by another Arthur. It claimed that the curse could be broken when the next Arthur found the person to be bond to him by the red strings of fate. But that obviously hadn't happened yet, because there were a couple later entries, one of his late grandfather. He always took the journal with him, maybe not all the times, but he always kept it in a safe place. He was determined to break the curse. That's why he stayed with Anna Sophia, because he believed her to be that person. He recently realized that she was obviously not, and Captain Kirkland's lover was an alternate form of her name, so he wanted to get away from her. But little did Arthur know that he couldn't escape fate, no matter how hard he tried. In fact, his fate was closer than he thought, two alternative fates that he would have the choice between. All in good time.

** Alright! That was a good set up, sort of. I have to leave for skills soon, so this will be super short. But there, a little bit of Delinquent!England and Pirate!England. Aren't you lucky. Anyway, I'll leave you with a fact until next time.**

**On average, 51 cars a year overshoot and drive into the canals of Amsterdam.**


	19. Phantom of the Opera: Part One

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia, or Phantom of the Opera. I'm sorry, it's been a little while since I updated. I was also pretty busy, I was invited to 5 parties this weekend. I feel bad, especially since I've been planning this chapter for a while. I'm so excited though, Alfred and Arthur are going to the theatre. Just the two of them. Like... a date? Not officially, however, it will be a little bit of disorganized chaos, and the production currently being performed is Phantom of the Opera. Just think about the title. And chapter 5. Catch my drift.**

**Dedications: Ce'Nedra Queen of Random, I love the new name sis, and I got that idea from this one crazy little place called my imagination. Amerikan Pi, I am so flattered that you like it so much, and angry at yahoo for sending this to spam. Grr, this is my angry face. PianoIsLove, I know! Isn't Pirate!England so amazing! Nekoneko, I like your type of math, I had my trig final the other day, I have to say yours is more fun. I might just have to have him dress like that again. Sakerat, I do, somehow, manage to breath. And hey, we won every game last week for soccer. Don't you just hate those 'healthy candies'? Listen, people don't buy candy to be healthy, they buy it because it tastes good. Don't sacrifice taste for health value! .bagels, I play the violin, too bad, we were so close. But I'm glad you started reading it, and that you think my disclaimers are funny, I keep them up as a sort of diary because I often neglect to right in my actual one. And Soot, I pity Pirate Kirkland too, he got murdered by his lover. But Alfred won't kill anyone. At least, not that you can prove legally.**

_"I am so sorry, Arthur. I thought that it would be a good bonding experience for you and Peter." Alfred apologized compulsively. All I said was that I didn't enjoy the whole experience at the movie. Can you really blame me, it reminded me of that bloody curse I have, let's face it, no chance of ever breaking. I guess it was inevitable, but I can dream can't I. Actually, scratch that. I don't want too, my dreams are becoming even more graphic and realistic. This morning, when I woke up, my lips were actually tingling! It was like some sort of bloody chick-flick, like Annie used to make me watch with her. But I am a man, so I didn't enjoy them. Not at all. Not even a little bit... okay, so they were okay, but nobody has to know._

_ "It's okay, Alfred. Really, I lived with Annie. I'm used to seeing things I didn't exactly enjoy." I joked, trying to lighten the mood. He smiled again. It felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders._

_ "Well, I thought I'd make it up to you." Alfred held two strips of paper out. I stared at them in awe. They were two tickets to see Phantom of the Opera tomorrow at the theatre. It was the last week that they would be in town. I saw it once back in London, but Annie didn't want to go see it. She said that theatre was a waste of money, and the tickets weren't cheap. "Do you like them." I snapped back to the present._

_ "Wah-ah-er-um yeah! I lo- how did you know?" I bluntly asked him. He looked at me with curious eyes. That's something I envy about him, Alfred. He always had that childlike wonder about him that lit up the entire room. He was the kind of kid that always find the good in a situation, and that is what I love about him. Er, even in my head, that sounded awkward. I mean, it's not like I, you know, like him or anything, but... he's really special to me. _

_ "I had a feeling that you would want to go to one of these, uh, classy things. I've never been to one, but Matthew says they're great. He went to one across town a little while ago with Frenchie. I really want things to go right for us..."_

"Arthur! You ready to go?" Alfred walked in, interrupting Arthur's memory of the day before. It had started out rough, but he was so excited for the musical, he didn't even mind his dreams that night, which was rare. As he turned around, he grew breathless at the sight. He had seen Alfred in some amazing outfits, but never like this. He wore a black tuxedo with a red bow tie. His hair was slicked back. He had this whole 'James Bond' look about him that made Arthur feel like he was going to pass out. Pass out, not faint. Because he was a man, and men don't faint.

"Uh, almost." Arthur finished tying his bow tie. He wore a white tux with a similar red tie. His hair looked notably smoother, as he used conditioner on it for once, but it was still a somewhat mess. But regardless of that, Alfred still looked at him in the same way he was. After a couple of seconds of just staring at each other, Alfred broke the silence.

"We should probably get going." Alfred commented. Arthur nodded his head in agreement. As they walked to the front door, Gilbert took a few snapshots of them walking. Arthur yelled that he was a 'bloody wanker' once, but that was pretty much it. He was very secretly was glad that Gilbert took the pictures, as they would always be a reminder of this night. He was going to have a great time, get to see a musical that he'd been wanting to see again for the longest time, and do it all with someone who had quickly become his best friend. The person he trusted most. It was strange, but completely true. He felt like he could tell Alfred anything, and he knew that Alfred would understand no matter what.

"Wait until you see this." Alfred covered Arthur's eyes as they walked out the front door. Arthur instantly started to struggle around, he was not one for surprises.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Arthur flailed his arms around, almost hitting Alfred on multiple occasions. But Alfred just found this motion endearing, if not down-right adorable. He stood in stopped at the end of the driveway in front of the gate and removed his hands. Arthur stared at the vehicle in front of him. It was a red Ferrari, with expensive leather interior and brilliant chrome spinners. Arthur recognized that car. He'd never seen it in person, but he had seen it in photographs Alfred had shown him. It was Alfred's prized Ferrari, one that a good friend of him from Italy gave him. Alfred got hung up on sentimentality too, something that made Arthur smile every time he thought of it. Not that it was it mattered, it was a kick ass car regardless. "Alfred..."

"My baby... she's back." Arthur could tell Alfred was grinning by his tone of voice. He started laughing, which caused Arthur to giggle too. "Dad finally gave her back. He says he trusts me enough, that I deserve her now." Alfred was mixed with emotions. There was everything that he could say. The car was full of so many memories, all of which could come flooding out in one marvelous symphony of jumbled words. But they didn't. Alfred just stood there, staring, going over everything in his head. Arthur respected that, but they also had the musical to go to.

"Come on, Alfred." He broke through the heavy silence. Alfred didn't move, still entranced with his own memories. Arthur grabbed Alfred and turned him towards his own body. At this point, Alfred was back to reality, but just stared at Arthur. He wasn't too much shorter than Alfred, and if he so wanted, Alfred could just lean over and kiss him if he wanted to. And boy did he want to. But he didn't. Because this was more than just a simple crush. Not just any puppy love infatuation. Alfred knew, this was real, or at least on it's way. Arthur had grown to mean so much to him. He thought of him when he woke up, to when he settled in for the night. When Arthur smiled, it was like the greatest prize he could be offered. When Arthur cried, his heart sank to the same level as the Englishman's. He didn't want to rush things, because he knew from experience, it could all end in a heartbeat. He wanted to savor his time with Arthur, no matter what the other felt back.

"Arthur." He quietly spoke, but Arthur didn't hear it. Arthur was unaccustomed to Alfred not jabbering his ear off. Normally, he hated people like that, but with Alfred, it was a strange comforting. Alfred's happy-go-lucky attitude was like a security blanket. He had gotten so used to it, that he became uncomfortable whenever Alfred was anything but. He needed Alfred happy. He needed Alfred. These past weeks had been the best he had had in a long time. He wanted to keep it like that forever, but he wasn't sure how.

"Alfred. Stop being so bloody quiet. It doesn't suit you." He started. "Listen, I know it's hard not to get hung up on all your memories, but come on. If you just stand around, you'll never get that chance to make any new memories. So come on. Make some new memories. With me." Arthur looked straight into Alfred's crystal blue eyes. Alfred stared back and smiled. On instinct, both began to move closer, closing the gap between their bodies and lips. Almost. But as soon as both boys realized what was going on, they both turned away from the other. What had just happened. They had almost... kissed? No, that wasn't possible... or was it.

"So, let's get to that musical!"

** Remember, this was just part one of the date. The next is where the real date. To Phantom of the Opera. That will go well. Anyway, we are at the point in the relationship right now where they've made it to good friends, and now the sexual tension builds. It keeps building and building, and eventually they will need an outlet. I'm trying to keep it slow. Anyway, last day of school today, so summer time happy! Woohoo.**

**The numbers '172' can be found on the back of the U.S. $5 dollar bill in the bushes at the base of the Lincoln Memorial. **


	20. Phantom of the Opera: Part Two

**Disclaimer: I own none of the before mentioned things from the other chapters. Wooh! I feel like I just drank 6 cups of coffee! I seriously got addicted to tv dramas. Blame Glee. Now everything has some sort of drama connotation. Does that work? I don't care, and frankly, neither do you. On to the fic. Oh wait, I have dedications to do.**

**Dedications: Ce'Nedra Queen of the Random, don't give it away, just because you can read my fractured mind like a map doesn't mean everyone else can. I mean sometimes you can't read it, heck, sometimes I don't even know what the hell I'm thinking. Prussia'sIndia, thank your friend for me, I'm so glad you like it. And by the way, you need to worry not, Canada ends up with Prussia in this story. PianoIsLove, no, really, thank you, I love my readers so much! Soot, I think anybody would, they're just that hot. Xx-Smile-its-Yaoi-xX, congratulations, you get to read the rest, you winner you. Nekoneko, great to hear from you again, and I agree, math is better that way. And Yukidaru, he'll get over it. After all, his life has become a lot better since he met Alfred. You have to admit that.**

The ride to the theater started out very awkward, but the mood lightened as they moved forward. Alfred started telling a whole slew of stories of pranks he's played, places he ended up in, and the punishments he'd ended up with in this car. Once, some high society son of one of his dad's clients passed out on the floor when he showed him a snake he found in the garden, so what would he do? Of course, he would draw a mustache on the guy's face, wouldn't you? And another time, when he had just gotten the car and his license, he grabbed Matthew and kept driving as long as he could, and eventually ended up in Winnipeg- that's in Canada! So, he took Matthew to a hockey game and they stayed up all night watching low-budget Canadian horror movies and drinking caffeinated soda. When they got back, they got grounded for 2 months, but Alfred snuck out every other night.

"Matthew was so angry about it, but lacked the guts to tell Dad, so I got away with it!" Alfred finished his story. Arthur laughed right along.

"Oh yeah, well this one time I..." Arthur got started on a story of his own involving peanuts, a chipmunk, and one very confused mailman. They went on like that for a while until they reached the theater, and by that time, all awkward feelings had dissolved. Alfred parked the car and actually helped got up to the other door and helped Arthur out, though he would have done it himself, he was amazed by the magnificence of the building.

"Geez Arthur, could you be anymore of a girl?" Alfred joked, causing Arthur's cheeks to turn a rosy shaded of red. But nevertheless, he took Alfred's hand and hopped out of the car. But, as I said, he hopped out of the car, and tripped when he got out. Luckily, Alfred was standing in front of them, and he landed right in Alfred's arms. They stayed in that position for only a couple of seconds, but everything seemed to be moving in slow-motion. Arthur heard the American's heart beat in sync with his as Alfred closed his arms instinctively around the Brit. Alfred was warm and comforting, his arms inviting, and it made Arthur want to stay in that position forever. That is, until he realized that it was reality. Alfred realized that at nearly the exact same time, so they simultaneously snapped out of their dream world and turned away from each other in embarrassment. Honestly, how many times does something like this have to happen for them to hPhone beeped to tell him that the show started in 5 minutes.

"Is it time? We better hurry!" Arthur panicked as he rushed to the entrance, joining the other overdressed theater-enthusiasts on their way to the tables. After all, this was a dinner theater, a classy one at that. Not that it mattered, Arthur knew he had class, and Alfred had enough money to behave however the hell he wanted and no one would give a damn. They got to their seats just as the orchestra began to tune and the lights began to dim. Arthur was almost shaking when they finally opened the curtain. Immediately, he was transported from the LA theater straight to the Paris opera house in 1905 as the Prologue begins.

"Sold. You're number sir? Thank you. Lot 663, then, ladies and gentlemen: a poster for this house's production of "Hannibal" by Chalumeau" As the auctioneer began his lines, a wave of drowsiness began to wash over Alfred. His eyelids felt heavy and he began only to hear little bits of the lines. "Do I hear 10 francs... You're number, sir... in the shape of a barrel-organ... discovered in the vaults of the theatre... lot 666, then: a chandelier in pieces... famous disaster." Words rolled in one ear and out the rest. By the time they started singing, their soothing voices put Alfred to sleep, slumping on Arthur's shoulder. Arthur smiled, Alfred was quite childish. He should wake him up, Christine is about to sing, but he decided to let him sleep for a little while. Arthur thoroughly enjoyed the musical. That is until Alfred woke up.

"Hah~" Alfred yawned. "Hey, what's going on?" Arthur put a finger to his lips to show Alfred to be quite then leaned in to answer.

"They're in the labyrinth right now, the Phantom is taking Christine to his lair." The Brit replied "But be quiet, their about to start singing Phantom of the Opera. It's my favorite." Alfred nodded.

"Ah, I see." A few moments of the opening of the song Phantom of the Opera began before Alfred's mind posed a question. "Hey Arthur, what's a phantom?"

"Like an apparition or a ghost." Arthur simply answered, not knowing the severity of his comment. All colour left Alfred's face immediately.

"Wah! A ghost! Holy shit! A ghost! A ghost! A GHOST!" Alfred spazzed, knocking over table ornaments and drawing attention from everyone in the theater, including the actors, but they continued on, stumbling over props and whatnot.

"Alfred, Alfred! Please calm down, you're attracting attention!" Arthur attempted to console Alfred, but it was all in vain. Alfred hit a poor waiter carrying an order, causing food flying everywhere, including a glass of wine landing right on Arthur's head.

"It's a ghost! It's a ghost! AHHHHHH!"

_-Later-_

"Well, that wasn't that bad." Alfred and Arthur walked through the front door, Arthur still damp with wine. Arthur turned and glared at him.

"Not that bad? We were banned from that theater for life!" Arthur exclaimed. Alfred gave him an easy-going look.

"Ah, they weren't serious." Alfred gave a dismissing shake of his hand.

"They took our bloody mugshots!" Arthur placed his hands on his hips without realizing it.

"It's not the first time." Alfred muttered to himself. "But that's just a formality. I mean, no one got hurt." Arthur raised a bushy eye.

"Oh really? No one got hurt. So, um, what do you call that one waiter. It would be have been one thing if you just knocked him out in your fit, but you just had to draw a mustache on him!"

"Like you wouldn't do the same thing."

"Of course I wouldn't! I've got class."

"You know you and your _class_ found it hilarious."

"That's beyond the point!" Arthur sighed. "I'm just really tired. I'm going to bed." Alfred bit his lip.

"Should I make reservations at a hotel?" He asked, feeling the lump in his throat grow with each word he said. Arthur turned to him in surprise. _'Did I say something to make him angry. I mean, of course I did, but did I hurt his feelings that bad?'_

"Wait, what?" Alfred wouldn't look him in the eye, he just kept turned away. "I'm sorry if I said something but-"

"No! It's not you. It's just..." He turned his back towards Arthur. "There's no way you'd want to stay with a guy who's afraid of something as stupid as ghosts." Arthur rolled his eyes.

"That's your reason." Alfred turned quickly around. "You know, what hurts the most is that you think I'm that shallow to hate you over some phobia. I'm not some git who gets so hung up over something like that, and you should know that." When Arthur laid a hand gently on Alfred's shoulder, a cheesy smile broke out across Alfred's face. He grabbed Arthur into a tight hug. Arthur stiffened up and attempted to push Alfred away. Eventually, Alfred got off of him and he turned away, hiding his bright face.

"I'm going to bed." Arthur announced, genuinely tired. But the tension was killing Alfred. He needed to tell Arthur how he felt.

"Wait, I have something to tell you!" He exclaimed. But when Arthur turned around, still red, Alfred chickened out. "I, uh, am gonna need to that suit to get it dry-cleaned." Arthur nodded and headed towards the stairs. Alfred knew he had know chose. He needed advice. Advice from someone who had more experience than most humans could possibly get. He needed to talk to Francis.

** Le gasp! Not Francis. But that's right, a confession is coming in a near future. I can't believe it, 20 chapters already. Now, I know you guys want that confession, I feel like I'm on a crime drama saying that, but that's a different confession. Anyway, I'll strike a deal. Now, I've got other fanfics I'm working on, but if I get 10 reviews for this chapter, I'll get to work on it right away. Sound good to you? In any case, but until then, I'm Purple Crayon signing off for- wait! What am I doing? Anyway, see ya guys.**

**According to suicide statistics, Monday is the favored day for self-destruction. Happy Monday, guys.**


	21. Confessions of a Lovesick Hero

**I officially disclaim Hetalia. Just thought I'd mix it up. Anyway, this is the chapter you've been waiting for. Alfred tells Arthur how he feels. And it only took 21 chapters. And Francis proves that he isn't the biggest douche in the world. Just, like, the third. There's a guy... in Brazil... and another... who's like, on tv and stuff- moving on! Anyway, it was storming pretty hard here, and I wasn't able to watch Glee like I wanted because the fucking weather people think that it's more important to inform people about the weather than to play Glee. Well, let me tell you something, it's not! But Anesan is writing me a LietPol based on my current experience to console me. I'm still angry. I have to take soccer pictures, and I am determined that they will be awesome. Like, Prussia awesome. But then again, yesterday, I was determined to play soccer with Italian pride, and I slipped on a golf ball playing goalie. Yeah. That sort of stuff happens only to me. But, on the bright side, Kathryn said my landing was epic.**

**Dedications: Anesan, because I don't feel like typing your pen name, really, you can read my mind most of the time... what am I thinking of while I am writing this dedication? Soot, I'd love to be a fly on the wall too, just not the fly part, it'd be weird looking through all those eyes, I would get dizzy and faint off the wall. Meganerd97, don't worry, we'll be getting into the Battle for Matthew sub-series pretty soon. Mikaela, I did too, poor guy will just have to watch the movie on youtube. PurpleLeopard, not actually a bad idea, although PruCan got a lot more votes, sorry. I, being an American, will have us take a vote on this. That's just how I roll. Xx-smile-its-yaoi-xX, how about now~. Grawrgrawrninja, thank you, I try. Amerikan Pi, don't worry, 8 is good enough. Now onto the story.**

The next morning was rough for Alfred, as he spent the entire night thinking of all the possibilities. What would happen if he confessed or not, how Arthur would respond, how his life would change if Arthur accepted his feeling. This was so frustrating, he never worried about this sort of stuff. He hated the Brit for turning his life upside-down with just his smile. But at the same time, he loved him for it. He knew he had to talk to Francis about this, no matter how much the guy creeped him out. He waited for everyone to get back from work, he didn't follow Arthur today. And of course, Francis decided to work even longer today and didn't return until about 6.

"Hey, Bonnefoy, I need to talk to you now." Alfred grabbed Francis's shoulder to catch his attention. Francis, as he always did turned around in almost slow motion, and Alfred could almost swear he could see rose petals falling from space as Francis did so. Seriously, this guy is creepier than the Phantom.

"What is it, dear Alfred." He responded, in a most sickeningly charming manner. Alfred cautiously looked in both directions.

"I can't talk about it here." He pointed to his feet. "We need to go someplace _secret_" He grabbed Francis by his sleeve and dragged him into the backyard, which was more extravagant than you could really call a backyard, passed the old swing set he and Matthew used to spend hours on, passed Matthew's garden, passed the tree he used to always climb and get stuck in, every time without fail, and finally to the pond.

"Mon ami, what was the whole point of that ordeal." Francis fixed his hair, removing all leaves and setting it back into place.

"I need advice." Alfred blurted, not ready wanting to beat around the bush, rather, he felt like one of the bushes they ran through beat him. Francis sighed in disappointment.

"Is that all, why do you not ask Arthur?" Francis suggested, already bored at where this was going.

"No! I can't do that because..." Alfred stopped there. In all his relationships, he never had to be the first person to say he loved the person. For most of his life, he thought he was straight. Being super popular in high school, he dated who status told him to date, usually cheerleaders. But those relationships were purely for reputation, and he really didn't care much if those failed. But losing Arthur was even more frightening than ghosts. He took a deep breath. "I love Arthur. I really, truly do, but..."

"But you don't know how to tell him." Francis sighed, sounding suprisingly

"So you've been through this before?" The American was slightly relieved that the suave Parisian had had his share of romantic troubles. But Francis just chuckled.

"Oh no, I'm much to handsome and charming for those issues." He gave a conceited smirk, then returned to his fake concerned charade. "But I've heard stories." Alfred began to regret ever talking to Francis. "My friend Antonio, his boyfriend Lovino is very... _non romantique_. He refuses to admit he is in _amour _with Antonio, but we all know he is. By the way, thank you for introducing me to Gilbert, he has become a great friend to Antonio and moi. He is so funny, especially when he's drunk. We got banned from 3 bars in the last week!" Alfred considered the horror he had released on the earth by uniting the Bad Touch Trio, but that was a concern he didn't have time for.

"Yeah, the bar on 26th street has a strict clothing policy. They kick you out if you even remove your- wait! We were talking about Arthur." He brought his left hand to his forehead, trying to keep his focus.

"Ah, but I would really like to hear that most wonderful story about when you removed your-"

"FRANCIS!" Alfred interrupted. "Seriously, what do I do?" Francis laid his hand gently on Alfred's shoulder, making him a little uncomfortable.

"You're worrying too much. It is beyond obvious that Arthur is most definitely in love with you, he just is waiting for you to admit it." He explained. Alfred looked pleasantly surprised.

"Really, you think he l-loves me?" Alfred's spirit lifted dramatically, and so did his ego. "Nufufu, of course he does. Look at me, I'm the hero! And everybody loves the hero, right. So I have nothing to worry about." Francis found Alfred's near-instantaneous optimism amusing, and genuinely laughed, not his normal suave chuckle, but an honest to goodness laugh. "What's so funny."

"You are!" He wiped a tear from his eye. "You really are such a child, hard to believe you're the older twin!" Alfred pouted at him.

"Of course I'm obviously the older twin! Hello, look at me!" But this just made Francis laugh harder. Though it annoyed Alfred, it was also a little comforting. He thought Francis would be completely self-absorbed jerk who only cared for Matthew because his father told him too, but this told him otherwise. He still didn't know if Francis's feelings for his brother were true, but he knew that at least Francis wasn't hanging around just to suck up to their father. Otherwise he wouldn't have insulted Alfred's pride with his laughter.

"Whatever you say." He managed through his laughter.

"Hmph!" Alfred turned away and began walking back to the house. He must have been out with Francis longer than he thought, because the sun had already began to sink as hues of pink, orange, and blue danced across the sky. As he passed into the garden he bumped into something, sending himself to the ground.

"Ow. Alfred you bloody idiot." He recognized that voice anywhere.

"Arthur! Wha-what are you doing in the rose garden!" Alfred stammered out.

"I was looking for you, you've been gone for nearly an hour! Are you stupid or something." At first, Alfred was a little upset to be scolded by Arthur, but then realized that Arthur must be doing this because he cared. About him. Hey, maybe Francis was right about Arthur liking him. So he should confess. I mean, look at where they were. The rose garden. At sunset. Just the two of them. You can't get a more storybook location! It must be fate telling him to confess.

"Hey, Arthur. I've got something to tell you." He led Arthur to a stone bench by some particularly chose roses. Arthur looked at them strangely.

"Okay, but I don't see why you needed to take me over here to tell me. It's-" Arthur started but was interrupted.

"Arthur, I've had a blast becoming such great friends with you." Alfred started, writing out the dialogue in his head.

"Yes, it has been a rather enjoyable experience. But the next World Cup game is on and-"

"But I can't take it anymore." Alfred continued. A lump grew in Arthur's throat. Had Arthur gotten tired of him already? Was he too hard on him last night about Phantom of the Opera? Yes it had to be that.

"Alfred, I'm sorry that I was so rude to you last night about Phantom." Arthur nervously apologized.

"Don't worry about it." Alfred quickly replied. "But listen. You've really become a great friend to me, but that's the thing. I don't think I can be happy with 'just great friends.'"

"Huh?" Oh god, Alfred was definitely kicking him out. This wasn't good, where would he sleep, he could stay in a motel for a while, but he didn't have too much money. But Arthur's downward spiral was interrupted for one last time.

"Arthur, I'm completely head-over-heels in love with you."

**Haha! I'm so evil I'm ending it there. And worse yet, for you guys at least, I'm leaving tomorrow (Sunday) on a mission trip until Friday, where there is no cell phones, tv, or computers. So, most likely, you will have to wait for next Saturday for the next installment and the of It All Started With A Shot of Tequila, and for Arthur's response. Okay, I actually really hate doing this to you guys, it's just the mission trip came at such a time... don't hate me, 'kay? But if I only had you're kind reviews to give me inspiration on the mission trip, I might be able to write as soon as I got home. Just think about that.**

** Anyway, did any of you catch the Us vs Slovenia match. We totally got robbed! We should have won that! That was a terrible call by the ref! Absolutely terrible, I was so angry. How did we get fowled, if anything, it was a Slovenia fowl. Anyway, if you are angry like me, or disagree completely, please review me your response.**

** Also, PurpleLeopard had the idea of making Russia end up with Estonia. How do you guys feel about that pairing, sorry sis, it just wouldn't make sense to bring Sasuke into this, he's too busy being an ass. So, all who say we have Russia end up with Estonia review "I" Got it?**

** Clans of long ago that wanted to get rid of unwanted people without killing them used to burn their houses down - hence the expression "to get fired" Luckily we are more civilized today kolkolkolkol.**


	22. OMAKE The Bad Touch Trio

**Psyche!**

**I know what you were all thinking when you saw this email.**

"**OMG! SHE UPDATED! I THOUGHT SHE WAS ON A MISSION TRIP OR SOMETHING!" (by the way, she did not go to Japan, as some people were somehow led to believe, but a few miles, uh, um... -points frantically in one direction- _east_, yeah, that's the direction she went. To the city. Yeah)**

**Anyway, this is not her, but her infamous ane-san, Ce'Nedra Queen of Random who has hacked her account (with her permission) to post an omake (also with her permission). Just to mess with all your heads.**

**Heh, this should be fun...**

Now, if one were to think back to the previous chapter, one would find a place where Francis briefly described his escapades with the group known as the 'Bad Touch Trio'. And what exactly those escapades were, well, that's what one is here to find out.

"Eh, snazzy place." Gilbert commented, hands in his pockets, slouching slightly, as he and his two new friends Antonio and Francis walked into a bar. It was a nice, quaint place on 26th street, a bit of a higher class establishment than the standard bar. But, let's face it, that doesn't change the fact of what it's there for.

"_Oui,_" Francis replied, scanning the place with an appraising eye, "It is _c'est magnifique."_ The group grabbed a few seats at the bar and sat down. "Such a wonderful evening, wouldn't you say, my friends?"

"Good for getting drunk." Gilbert answered with his signature grin.

"Indeed. What do you think, Antonio?" Francis turned to the third member of their group who had, up until then, been sitting happily and humming, most likely thinking about his 'adorable Lovi' and just being a general space case, "Huh? Oh, yes! It's nice to have a third person in our little group!" He replied happily, complete with the innocent smile.

"Oh, Antonio, sometimes you are just so blatantly naive and innocent." Francis shook his head, hands automatically moving towards Antonio where they began to strip him of his shirt. Until, that is, a hand slammed on the bar in front of them. It was the bartender.

"This bar has a strict clothing policy." The man growled in a thick, Dutch accent, "Belle, escort these men out." And with that, a blonde woman came up and, with a near superhuman strength, grabbed all three men by the collars and dragged them out of the establishment.

"And don't come back unless you agree to keep your clothing on!" She yelled with a Belgian accent of her own.

"Man, this sucks." Gilbert did a little martial arts move, pushing himself off the ground with his arms and landing on his feet.

"That was hardly just. They didn't even give us a warning." Francis huffed as he stood up, brushing himself off.

"Does that mean we are just gonna go home then?" Antonio asked, looking part hopeful (because Lovi was at home! Waiting for him! With his cute little tomato face!) part disappointed.

"Nah, we just move onto the next bar. No way is the Awesome Me gonna let something like this get him down!"

"_Oui_, I agree with Gilbert."

And with that, they moved onto the next bar.

This one was a bit less savory than the first one. Ok, scratch that. It was practically a biker bar. And let me tell you, if you have three richer looking people dressed in probably some fairly nice clothing, and Francis in your group (cause you all know that is totally true), you are most likely going to get kicked out before you can even take a seat at the bar.

Which is exactly what happened.

"Man, this sucks!" Gilbert complained as they walked down the street. He kicked a rock and watched as it fell through a gutter, "We haven't even gotten a single drink yet!"

"Yes, it is _tres_ terrible." Francis did his overly dramatic head hanging thing. Suddenly, Antonio stopped and looked at a building.

"Hey guys, what's that?" But the other two didn't hear him and just kept on walking.

"Tis quite the unfortunate evening."

"Hey guys!"

"No kidding, man."

"GUYS!"

Gilbert and Francis stopped and turned around, finding the Spanish man quite a few paces behind them.  
"Ah, Antonio, what is it?" Francis asked as he and Gilbert walked back to their friend.

"_That._" Antonio replied, pointing to the bar that stood in front of them.

"Nice catch! Looks perfect!" Gilbert grinned mischievously, slapping Antonio on the back as the three walked into the bar.

Turns out, the place was owned by a group of Nordic men who were perfectly willing to serve them.

"Dude! This beer is fucking amazing!" Gilbert exclaimed as he slammed down an empty tankard onto the bar.

"Thank you! We make it here ourselves." A kind Finnish man named Tino, one of the owners, replied as he happily wiped down the bar, "Matthias made that batch, I believe." He added, referring to the Danish man who worked there. The other owner, a tall, imposing Swedish man named Berwald stood behind him.

"That I did! One of my best yet, if I do say so myself." Matthias said as he entered the room with another, the Norwegian man named Nikolai who also worked there. His arms were currently wrapped around Nikolai's neck from behind and despite the fact the Norwegian looked very annoyed at their position, Matthias seemed perfectly content to stay that way for the rest of the night.

"Haha, you're almost as awesome as I am!" Gilbert laughed, holding his hand out to the other man for a high five. Matthias unraveled his arm from around Nikolai's neck to give that high five before he returned it to it's previous place.

"Get off me. You're annoying." The Norwegian growled.

"Aw come on now, Norge, you know you don't want that." The Dane grinned and then he leaned down and whispered something in his ear. Nikolai promptly turned bright red and quickened his pace out of the room, Matthias following relentlessly.

"One wonders what he just said." Francis said, all of their eyes trained on the exiting couple.

"Meh, that's just normal behavior." Commented the final employee, an Icelandic man named Erik.

"I see." Francis nodded his head understandingly before turning back to face Tino, "Now, Tino, tell me,do you have any plans later tonight." He took both of the other man's hands in his own and brought one up so he could kiss the knuckles, looking up suggestively at the Finn the entire time.

"E-eh?" Tino said, clearly surprised and taken aback.

"St'y aw'y fr'm m' w'fe." Berwald growled, pulling Tino protectively against his chest and out of the French man's grip.

Suffice to say, the group was then thrown out of their third bar of the evening.

**And that is the story of how the bad touch trio managed to get thrown out of three bars in one evening. Yup, just like that.**

**What? Why are you all looking at me like that! So what if I'm a Nordic fan! I just had to include them! I also just _had _to hint at SuFin and DenNor! Those are two of my favorite pairings, along with Spamano (which also got plenty hinted at).**

**Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this and don't get _too _mad at my Sis for letting me do this!**

**And now for the random fact of the chapter (Because my sister spazzed at me about the importance of including this)**

**Did you know that many book publishing companies say that those who read science fiction books are smarter than the average book buyer? Soooooo true, if you ask me.**


	23. Better Than a Dream

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Hetalia. I'm sorry, I got back from the trip Friday, but I had some parties and such and really didn't have the time to write. But I had a great trip, and it was really enlightening. Although what bugs me is that my parents are on my case because all the friends that really talk much about from the trip are guys. I just connected with some of the guys better than some of the girls, no big deal. But you know parents. Anyway, it was great time and I'm really glad that I took my journal with so I can remember it forever. And, I'm sorry about my sister, the concept of subtly is lost on her. In terms of style, she's comedy and I'm drama. So again, sorry about that.**

**Dedications: PrussiaHax, it is a happy notion that he confessed. Xx-Smile-its-Yaoi-xX, I do take pride in being slightly evil. Randompuddle, thanks so much for your insight, I missed the beginning of the game and I also enjoy hearing the other view point. Soot, sorry for ending it there, but remember, if you kill me, there won't be anymore of this and then where would we be. Anesan, it may have been hilarious for us, but isn't that some sort of inside joke, and wouldn't really be fair to the other readers. , thanks, I really tried hard to capture the essence of it, if _that_ makes sense. Amerikan Pi, whatever revenge you plan to do, just don't leave any evidence. I'm just a puppet, thanks for the vote. Yukidaru, your well wishes meant a lot to me. Amelia L. Jones, oh no no no, I just went down town. But wouldn't it be nice, I always wanted to visit Japan. Kalikuvaz, I'll tell you what I tell my sister all the time, patience is a virtue. Although the younger sister isn't usually the one whom that gets told to. Allied Forces, a true soccer hero like myself, not really, wouldn't dare leave it out. Purplecatgirl, I hate it when the refs get offsides mixed up, they totally robbed my team at our game last night, which I have a few lovely bruises from. And I love being involved, so I like to keep my readers involved, it's just how I role. Anesan, again, you did very well, and yes, I know how much you love the Nordics. Soot, that they did. PianoIsLove, I'm really sorry, but my sister somehow made this SuFin without consulting me first, granted I was on a mission trip. Now, I could just disregard that and go ahead with that, but I do have to spend the entire summer with her, and she does have an impressive amount of deadly weapons in her bedroom, which is right next to mine, and I'm not sure if I want to risk it. PurpleLeopard, that would have been interesting to say the least, but anesan can't really write that stuff.**

_A look back at the last chapter_

"_Hey, Bonnefoy, I need to talk to you now."_

"_I love Arthur, I truly do, but..."_

"_We got banned from 3 bars last week!"_

"_Arthur is most definitely in love, he just is waiting for you to admit it."_

"_Alfred, you bloody idiot."_

"_I have something to tell you."_

"_I'm sorry I was so rude to you last night about phantom"_

"_I don't think I can be happy with 'just great friends'"_

"_Arthur, I'm completely head-over-heels in love with you."_

_Now back to the story_

_ 'I'm completely head-over-heels in love with you.'_ Did Arthur hear him right? No way, this was obviously just another incredibly vivid dream. Too vivid. He felt all the color drain from his cheek as his heart rate sped up to a record rate. He long ago gave into the fact that he might be slightly... attracted to Alfred, but this was becoming to much. He realized that his mouth was agape and abruptly closed it, bringing it into a polite smiled he used to use around the in-laws.

"Pardon me for a moment." He excused himself as he quickly rushed to his feet and ran to the decorative well a few feet away. Of course it worked. He brought the bucket up but froze for a second as he held it over his head. When he turned over the bucket, this, let's face it, wonderful dream would all be over.

"What are you doing!" He heard Alfred yell and made his decision. He didn't want to keep being under the impression that his obviously unrequited feelings could ever possibly be returned. I mean, look at Alfred! What would a handsome, rich young man with the world at his fingertips want with a divorced, sarcastic middle-class man such as himself. He held his breath as he turned the water bucket over, expecting to return to consciousness immediately. But instead, he stood there, soaking wet, trying to figure out what just happened. "Arthur!"

"Okay *cough* I think *cough* that I'm awake." He sputtered, water dripping into his eyes and mouth. He didn't even notice that Alfred was there until he felt a hand on his shoulder and one under his chin. Alfred lifted his chin up so he was looking him in the eyes, just like he saw on tv.

"What are you going on about?" He asked in all seriousness. Color returned to Arthur's flushed cheeks as he tried to turn his head away from Alfred's hypnotic gaze. He didn't succeed in tearing his head away from Alfred's hand, but did avert his eyes so he wouldn't get to caught up in the moment.

"This has to be a dream. A dream I just can't wake up from and it's pissing me off because I know you'd never fall for me in real life." He muttered, but it was loud enough for Alfred to hear. He loosened his grip shock, so that his arms fell to his sides.

"And you call me the idiot." Arthur looked back for just a moment to see Alfred... almost smiling. No, he was definitely grinning. But this was the serious part of the dream! And did Alfred just call him an idiot? Haha, no, that was not right. He felt Alfred whack him hard on his back. "I just told you I loved you, and you don't believe me." Arthur felt a twinge of guilt at that statement. I mean, if this was real life, and that last hit certainly felt like real life, he could see how Alfred might be upset if he acted like Alfred's feelings didn't mean a thing. And the funny thing was, Alfred would act exactly like this and- OHMYGAWD! THIS IS REAL LIFE!

"What!" Arthur exclaimed, jumping as he finally understood. "You actually love me!"

"Delayed reaction much."

"Bu-bu-but," At this point Arthur was shaking. Noticing this, Alfred thought it would be the hero-ly thing to do to wrap his arms around his beloved. So he did so. "Ah! Alfred, w-why me?" Alfred pulled away, and looked Arthur straight in the eye once again. He put on a serious face again.

"Because you see me." He simply stated.

"Huh?"

"You see beyond what everyone else sees and saw the real Alfred F. Jones. All my life, I've never been able to tell if people liked me for me, or because I was rich and popular. I was so used to that, but all I ever wanted was someone that didn't care about my money or anything. Just me. And when I met you, I felt a connection from the start. I thought, something seems right. Right from the moment I met you, it wasn't about the money or the handsome. You just honestly disliked me." Alfred started. He was more perceptive than he come off to be, Arthur was sure that, no matter how hard he tried, Arthur couldn't get him to realize that he didn't like him... at first. But he apparently got it from the beginning. "But I kept on trying, and we became friends. I might have started just liking you, but the closer we got, the more I knew in my heart that this was meant to be. Though you may sometimes be a cynical, sarcastic stick in the mud, you've always been perfect to me."

Though he was pretty sure that he just got insulted, Arthur felt happy tears well up in his eyes. It may be a dream, or reality, but he might as well just go with the flow. "And though sometimes you're a egoistic, hero-obsessed moron, I couldn't have asked for a better person to fall in love with." Alfred pulled him into a tight hug. It was weird. Arthur could hear Alfred's heart beating. _Tha-thump tha-thump tha-thump._ It was almost... comforting. Being in Alfred's arms made him feel safe. Like nothing again could ever harm him. Oh wait! He was sounding like a lovestruck teenage girl again. Damn it!

"Hey, Alfred... does this mean that we're... together now." He asked from inside Alfred's warm embrace. He felt a little embarrassed by this all.

"I suppose it does." He replied.

"Then we should make it official."

"How?"

Arthur grabbed the backed up a little and this time he was the one who looked the other in the eyes, much to the surprise of said American. He had to do this like Anna Sophia used to do when he got mad at her. She would put on a cutesy face and he would be wrapped around her finger. He needed to go into 'lovely mode' immediately. "I-I want you to k-k-kiss me." There was an awkward pause for a second. Had it worked?

"Bwahahahaha!" Alfred burst into hysterical laughter. Nope, it hadn't worked. At least not like Arthur had planned. Alfred rolled on the ground, he was laughing so hard.

"Sorry, I'll just leave." Arthur hung his head in defeat and turned to leave when Alfred stopped laughing. Instinctively, Arthur snapped around to see Alfred picking himself of the ground. He wiped a tear from the side of his eye and let out one last brief chuckle before walking over to Arthur and grabbing his chin again.

"Hey, where are you going." He seductively winked at Arthur, causing him to gasp quietly. "Weren't you the one who suggested that we make this official with a kiss. You can't leave me now."

"I-I guess." Arthur replied his lips already tingling from what he knew was to come. "But-"

"Shh!" Alfred pressed his finger to Arthur's lips, which was supposed to be romantic, but ended up being just a little... awkward. But nevertheless, Alfred seemed to know what he was doing and as he closed the gap, he removed his finger and replaced it with his own soft lips.

The impact sent a rush of electricity tingling through Arthur's spine. Whether or not this was a dream, he didn't care. Because this was better than any other dream he had, so why not live in the moment. He slowly parted his lips to allow Alfred to explore his mouth more thoroughly. It was absolutely magical, and Arthur knew magic very well. Unknowingly, Arthur's left foot began to rise behind him. It seemed like they were kissing forever, though really it was only 30 seconds top. Only when he'd run out of breath did Alfred pull away.

"Wow." They both simultaneously whispered. Then, they heard a rustling in the bushes, along with an eery chuckle. Up popped a young woman with long brown hair and a devilish grin. Holding a camera in her shaky hands. Crap.

_-afterwords with Arthur and Alfred-_

Alfred: Hey Arthur, remember in that last scene when we kissed.

Arthur: Tch, don't remind me. That was so embarrassing!

Alfred: Well, if you look back at it, you'd see that your foot popped.

Arthur(embarrassed): S-so!

Alfred: Well, if your foot popped, then that means that you're the girl in the relationship!

Arthur: What!

_-the end-_

** Well, I thought I would include a sort of funny afterword, even though, come on Arthur, we all knew you were the uke. So I hope you guys liked it, I would have put it up earlier, but I got distracted by a disaster. The skype conversation I had with my sister, though she was only a wall away, went a little like this.**

Me: Terrible thing just happened!

Me: Youtube hates me!

Anesan: what got copyrighted

Me: Hatafutte Parade

Anesan: told ya

Me: and I also removed Mein Gott, because chances are that was about to be removed, which would mean my account would be deleted

Anesan: that's the problem with Hetalia stuff. Copyright issues. I warned you

Me: That's stupid!

Me: Give the fans the right to do fan stuff!

Anesan: oh well. what can you do

Me: nothing...

Anesan: precisely

Me: K-on sorta gives off a yuri feel in the anime _*random much*_

Anesan: it kinda gives one off in the manga too

Me: ...so it would be sort of yaoi with the genderbends...

Anesan: ... that it would be.

Anesan: or the Hetalia version

Me: that too

Anesan: mhm!

Me: Write! That's what I need to do! Youtube may be able to bring me down, but fanfiction won't!

Anesan: No it won't! FF is all about breaching copyright!

Anesan: Kinda

Me: Yes!

Me: Screw copyright! Let's all be like china!

Anesan: Exactly!

Anesan: my finger feels like it was burned

Anesan: maybe I shouldn't have touched the lightbulb while the lamp was on...

Me: yeah

Anesan: I was just trying to tighten the bulb

Me: That doesn't bother me as much because I have violin fingers

Anesan: pshah

Me: and I swear, one day I'll have guitar fingers!

Me: Although they are pretty much the same

Anesan: whatever

**And that is pretty much how our conversation went, I have to admit, it's one of the more normal conversations we've had, but whatever. You guys can feel my pain, right. I spent hours making an awesome lyric vid for Romano's Hatafutte Parade, and then youtube had the nerve to take it off and threaten to delete my account if I did it again. That was my precious summer, dammit! Give it back, jerks! Anyway, enough venting, onto a fact.**

**Cats can hear ultrasound. Nyan.**


	24. The Fourth Wall

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. Hey guys! I'm back from Nowhere, Wisconsin, where I went for a completely pointless family reunion with my preppy as hell extended family. Although my close extended family, my cousins and stuff, aren't preppy. But while we were there, we got the cousins into Hetalia, it was great! No internet though. But we had fun sometimes, we each named each other as the country they were most like. I apparently am like Italy according to them, useless, Anesan is Hungary, and we also had America, Germany- who wasn't quite aware of the completely obvious relationship our characters have- Sealand- a cutie who I glomped multiple times a day, a funny story about one time. I'll share that at the end- Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Yup, I have one unique family. Note that I was the only person that changed genders. I was also Romano sometimes, but that was just in the morning when I'm not pleasant. Shut up sis!**

**Dedications: PianoIsLove, thanks for being so understanding. My sister is seriously sitting beside me now with a wooden sword to make sure that I write. Yeah, she is great. Anesan, I'll do whatever I feel like. You're wearing my earings! I was looking those! MegaNerd97, don't worry, there's PruCan in this chapter :) Yukidaru, having female friends is great, but hanging with the guys is just too much fun sometimes. IM-IN-URHOUSE-EATIN-URPRETZELS, they paid me nothing. I love the genderbent picture you drew of you, Anesan, and me. And of course JAN THE CAKE. I love you Jan, I'm sorry I ate you, even though you were delicious. Soot, stupid youtube and their copyright issues. Heizaru Robatsu Hime, I absolutely love your review. But if you die now, you will never catch the end! And that's not right.**

**That is right! There is fucking PruCan in this chapter**

"This footage is perfect!" The bush lady shouted, waving her camera triumphantly in the air. Arthur suddenly felt sick, absolutely sick to his stomach. What if the guys at work saw that picture! Granted at least half of them were openly gay, and most of the others there were on the brink of coming out, but still! Oh dear god, what if Anna Sophia saw it! He had to admit, the face Anna Sophia would have seeing her ex snogging the guy she had a completely pathetic crush on would be notably hilarious, but she could do some bad things with that photo. Arthur couldn't name any off the top of his head, but still.

"Aunt Elizaveta, give me the camera." Alfred calmly held out his hand. Arthur had to admit, Alfred was being pretty cool, it's like he completely read his mind. The woman simply pouted and hugged her camera tight.

"I don't want to, you can't erase it!" She whined.

Alfred stood up straight and blinked his eyes a couple of times. "Erase it? Of course I wouldn't. I just want a copy to put in my wallet." Arthur took back everything he just thought about Alfred.

"Um, Alfred. Here's the thing, that picture could do some serious damage to my career if it got out in the public." Arthur tried to explain. He could just imagine, being at a job interview, no one's job is ever safe in this economy, and they pull out that picture, and all of a sudden he can't get a job and he's forced to live on the streets. Oh dear, it would be absolutely awful.  
"Please Arthur, I've been to your office. None of the guys there would think anything of it. In fact, I'm sure there are worse pictures of some of them floating around." There was no doubt in Arthur's mind that was completely true, but he did have at least a little pride!

"That's beyond the point. Alfred. Listen to me." Arthur tried to keep calm, ignoring his overwhelming urge to slap Alfred across the face so that he would listen to him. Contrary to popular belief, slapping people tends to not improve interpersonal relationships.

"Oh! That's perfect. A conflict scene. Act like you're annoyed. At each other, not me!"

"Oh, let me introduce you to a family friend of ours, Elizaveta. This, uh, could take a while."

_-Meanwhile-_

"Yo Mattie! Guess what! I am so fucking awesome!" Gilbert burst through Matthew's bedroom door, right as he was getting changed.

"Gilbert!" He shrieked. "I'm changing!" Luckily he had only just removed his shirt, but it was still slightly awkward, or at least Matthew thought so.

But Gilbert was obviously completely fine with that, because he just stood in the door and analyzed Matthew for a little while before saying "Man you're scrawny. You should work out more."

"Was there a point for you bursting in other than to just annoy me." Matthew glared at Gilbert, but couldn't stay angry for long. Every time he looked into Gilbert's intense red eyes, he became filled was a medley of emotions, half of which he couldn't describe. He liked Francis, don't get me wrong, but his affection with for Francis was so safe, like a perfect picture colored completely in the lines. But Gilbert was so unpredictable, it gave Matthew a sense of danger, like a completely new design, not knowing how the picture was to turn out, whether it turned out good or bad, Gilbert in and of himself was an adventure.

"Is there any better reason than to grace you with my awesome presence? But seriously, I do need to talk to you." Gilbert plopped down onto Matthew's bed. Matthew walked over to the bed and sat down next to him, not even having to be asked. But he wasn't close enough for Gilbert's taste, so he wrapped his arm around Matthew's shoulder's and pulled him in closer to him. Matthew was completely used to this, having dated Gilbert in the past for who knows how long, and scooted closer to him so Gilbert could rest his arm comfortably on Matthew's shoulder's. Gilbert sighed happily. "This is exactly as it should be."

It wasn't that Matthew didn't thoroughly enjoy being so close to Gilbert, but he did feel a little impatient with the other man. Most people would feel a little cross after having to drive out about half an hour last week to pick up your (tentative) boyfriend, your (maybe) ex-boyfriend, and their (definitely) overly perky Spanish friend from a bar because they were too drunk to take care of themselves. "What do you want- and if you say 'you' I swear I'm kick you in a very unpleasant place."  
"How cheesy, that sounds exactly like something Francis would say. That guy is a fucking riot, though he isn't nearly as awesome as me. But I just wanted to talk to you. You know, I may not be good at that romantic shit, but I should at least try." Gilbert gestured broadly to the space in front of them. "I mean, us being together is what the readers want."

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, nothing, nothing at all. But really, I just want to let you know that the entire time that I spent in Germany, I thought of you everyday." Gilbert paused. "Except for those days I was super hungover and couldn't hold my train of thought for longer than a couple of seconds- but that's beyond the point! Matthew, I never stopped loving you and I know that I'm too awesome for you not to love me too. Now at this point, according to one of West's relationship book's that he bought to deal with Feliciano, I'm supposed to tell you to think about it and leave. So think about it... bye." And with that, Gilbert left the room as unexpected and slightly irritating as he came.

Matthew couldn't help but smile. Gilbert was a clueless idiot, completely unpredictable and sometimes childish, but he did have a point. Matthew knew he would never forgot how he felt for Gilbert, there was no getting over it. "You're an idiot." His words lacked sting, and he knew that Gilbert wouldn't be able to hear him, but he said it anyway.

_-Meanwhile-_

"-and then I we've been friends ever since." Elizaveta finished. Alfred looked positively bored, as he had the attention span of a squirrel, but Arthur found it interesting. Elizaveta was quite a bit younger than Ivan, she was just in 3rd grade when Ivan was a senior in high school, but she was friends with his younger sister, though their friendship did start out rough. Natalia, Ivan's sister, was beating up on Toris, who was a 5th grader at the time, and Elizaveta went to help him out, and ended up getting in a fight with Natalia. Somewhere along the way, they became friends.

"Hey, is Aunt Natalia here?" Alfred asked, finally remembering what he was doing there. As if on cue, he heard a completely unfamiliar sound. It almost was like his father... screaming. Oh dear, that could only mean one thing.

"Brother! I finally found you! Let's get married!"

**To be continued**

** I freaking loved it when Prussia broke the 4th wall. He is so the type of character that would do that. That's right! Ugh, I dropped a book on my face and my chin started bleeding. According to my sister, she can't take me seriously with this bandaid on my face. Anyway, this week, my sister and I are counselors at this church summer musical camp, and I have a lovely group of second grade girls that I'm in charge of with my friend. I always like the idea of Belarus and Hungary being friends, and I got to include some PruCan in it. Anyway, instead of a fact, I decided I'm going to tell you guys a story that I mentioned earlier in the authors note.  
So anyway, I was in a store with some of my family, and that included the one that is sort of like Sealand. Now, he is so super adorable, so a lot of times I will randomly glomp him or rub his head or stuff like that. But back on topic, we were at the store and I saw the back of someone who looked exactly like him. So I of course went of to him and started ruffling his hair, when the little boy turned around. It wasn't my cousin, it was some stranger, and he was just stared up at me in complete horror. So I do what anyone else would do. I ran as fast as I could to the other side of the store. Poor kid probably thinks I'm some sort of stalker...**


	25. Hello Goodbye

**Disclaimer: Hetalia I own not. Well excuse me for trying to mix it up a little. Super boring here, other than babysitting small sleeping children for minimal amounts of cash. Of course, that's better than when they wake up and try to steal my cell phone. Oh well, money is money and I could always use more of that. Going to camp next week, so I'll try to update once more before I go, but just in case, I promise no cruel cliff hangers at the end like on the mission trip.  
Dedications: Anesan, I just had to do it. I had an idea and let it take me where it takes me. ****Heizeru Robatsu Hime, you'll find your Belarus eventually. I believe in you. PianoIsLove, some things just never get old, do they. Soot, I can imagine it too. Very well. Yukidaru, if his ex caught him snogging Alfred, that would be hilarious!**

**IMPORTANT: As we are nearing 200 reviews, I find it important to put in that the 200****th**** reviewer gets there very own one-shot for the pairing of their choice. Really, I'm not picky, I'll write for everyone. So review if you want that dang one-shot.**

**I just totally pulled a Poland. So, I was calling my friend cause I need someone to go to the mall with me, because going to the mall alone is, like, so not fun, so I asked her if she wanted to go and she said she couldn't because she broke her collar bone so I'm all "Oh my gawd, that, like, totally sucks." Then I had to hold back my laughter because I realized what I just sounded like.**

Alfred just stood there, completely confused on what just happened and what he would do next. He knew his aunt Natalia was... special. And by that he meant crazy. Like, completely psycho. So, why the hell would he want to go and check things out when he knew that his aunt was dangerous. On the other hand, seeing this crazy bitch that scared the crap out of his fearless dad would be epic! He'd only met her once at his mother's funeral when he was four, and she wasn't exactly mourning. All he remembered of that day was a creepy blonde girl his father was avoiding and getting ice cream afterwards.

"I should probably go make sure Natalia doesn't kill anyone." Elizaveta interupted Alfred's train of thought. But it also helped him make his desicion. I mean, if Elizaveta was going, why the hell not. Aunt Elizaveta showed up quite a lot, ever since Matthew came out of the closet. Especially since she was childhood friends/enemies with Gilbert. Though she was female, Elizaveta just happened to be the one of the manliest people Alfred knew.

The boys followed Elizaveta through bushes and over puddles and past one very paranoid squirrel until they reached Ivan, who was currently being glomped on by a pretty blonde girl. He looked like he was going to vomit, though Arthur didn't know why. He may be a little bicurious, getting more so by the day, but he still knew what society considered attractive in a woman.

"What do you say we get married now." She smirked, causing Ivan to wince in pain.

"I cannot do that, you are my sister and that is illegal." He carefully pronounced each word, as if trying to suppress a scream. Wait, did he just say sister?  
"Brother, I don't care if it's illegal. We shall leave the country if it so requires, as long as we can be together." Natalia began to sound like a bad soap opera.  
"Aw, lay off it Nat." Elizaveta broke in. "As you know, I have a finely tuned gaydar, and your brother's readings are off the charts." She snapped as she said the last three words.

Natalia glared at her, but let go anyway. "Well, I'm not going to give up. I'll find that sneaky bastard that's trying to steal you away and break every bone in his fucking body." She cracked her knuckles. Alfred wasn't sure if it was the words she said or the way she sounded so happy saying them, but it scared the crap out of him.

"Holy fuck! Elizaveta, what the hell are you doing here?" Gilbert appeared from behind Natalia, staring at Elizaveta with horror filled eyes.

"Hey Gilbert, it's been a while." Elizaveta greeted in return. "Glad you came back though, you and Matt are so cute together." Noted that Elizaveta was normally not this nice to Gilbert, however, when it came to him dating Matthew, she was absolutely thrilled.

Gilbert ran his fingers threw his nearly silver hair. "You better tell him that. He's currently dating Francis Bonnefoy, who is admittedly one of my best friends, but not as awesome as me." Elizaveta gasped, holding her hands over her mouth.

"Do you mean Francis Bonnefoy, blonde French bastard with a stubbly chin and rose fetish?" Gilbert nodded. "Are you kidding me! He tried to hit on Roderich so many times, I had to beat him with a frying pan!" Elizaveta was absolutely fuming.  
"Okay, seriously. You know Bonnefoy too?" Arthur exclaimed "I'm beginning think that he's hit on every attractive person in Europe and America?"

"I think he's gotten Canada too." Alfred added, feeling slightly left out of the conversation. In the confusion, Ivan managed to escape and run off to the helipad.

"Shit, he got away." Natalia bit her thumb as the helicopter took off. Alfred sighed, last time Ivan escaped on a helicopter, he was gone or nearly a month. He never actually never told the boys where he went, not that it was too big of a deal to them. The hockey finals were on at the time, so Alfred wasn't even sure if Matthew even realized he was gone.

"That's just great." He muttered. "I didn't even get to tell him the good news." Gilbert's ears perked up.

"Good news, what good news." Some people would call him nosy, but Gilbert simply saw it as he was too awesome to be left out of anything. I mean, who wouldn't want to tell him everything? Alfred grinned ear to ear and put his arm around Arthur.

"About my new boyfriend." He bragged, causing Arthur to grow completely red in the face. Elizaveta squealed, even though she knew already. It was always nice to hear them admit it.

"Whoa, boyfriend!" Peter exclaimed, popping up from the bushes. "No fucking way!" Arthur gasped.

"Peter, you're twelve, you shouldn't be using such vulgar language!" He scolded. Peter pouted as if he was going to cry.

"But I thought that now that I live in America, I should talk more American. I've even been watching American movies to learn more." Peter explained, although it didn't make Arthur feel any better. "I want to fit in when I go to school in the fall." Arthur felt even worse.

"Oh, just tell them your brother is dating a billionaire and they'll be begging to be your friend." Alfred advised.

Arthur glared back at him and replied, "Yes, but once you tell them the billionaire is another male, you'll lose all your friends." Alfred just laughed.

"Oh please, we live in one of the most liberal parts of California, everyone here is some shade of rainbow."

"That's it, I'm staying!" Elizaveta chimed in, eyes sparkling with yaoi fangirlish excitement. She took out her cell phone and began texting. "We've been looking for a place in California, Roderich's expanding his clientele to a larger crowd."

"That would be great, we could all have Thanksgiving dinner together!" Alfred cheered. Arthur just stared at him, trying to think of something to say, but failing miserably in the end.

"Well, as much fun as this has be, being none at all since Vanya left," Natalia interjected. Funny, they'd almost forgotten she was there. "But we need to get back to the hotel. I've got a bottle of Russian Vodka with my name on it and I'm not going to leave it unattended for another second."

"Well, it is getting late. I better get Peter here to bed." Arthur agreed. "But why don't you come with me to work tomorrow, see how things really work in America." Arthur fully expected Peter to politely decline, as work would probably be extraordinarily boring for him, but was proven otherwise.

"Sure! That sounds like fun!"

**I have to pack now, going to camp tomorrow. But don't worry, I will be sure to update when I get back! I got a super cool new bookbag and MOA today, although I drank too much coffee. I agree with Alfred, coffee is so much better than tea, even if I pretty much only drink ****mocha frappuccinos. It's summer and it's hot, why would I drink hot coffee. But whatever.  
****A goldfish has a memory span of about 3 seconds.**


	26. Anna's Plan

**Disclaimer: I'm back and still don't own Hetalia. I apologize, this next chapter might be slightly crackish- I'm cleaning the house in the hope that my father might give me money to get an itunes card to buy the VPS (Very Potter Sequel) soundtrack on itunes. I am determined, but I also am taking a quick break to get started on this chapter. Because I've been looking forward to writing this.**

**Dedications: MyEternalSilence8, you're in luck because this is what it is. Soot, in essence, camp really was camping. No electricity, no running water, sleeping in tents. Nah, it was all good fun. The Beatles Sherlock Holmes Fa, I love all your epic reviews, I really do. You are so super awesome, thanks for reviewing throughout this. Perfect1Up, mine is getting pretty good, but you really can't beat Elizaveta's gaydar. It's just that epic. Heizeru Robatsu Hime, good luck! You go out and find your Belarus! Don't give up! PianoIsLove, hey, thank you for reviewing. I'll gladly write if people like what I write. Mariko Higa, thanks, my insanity level often fluctuates, so I'm glad I found a good level to attempt to keep it at. Anesan, we all know Matthew loves hockey more than almost anything in the world. It's just how he works.**

**Congratulations to Perfect1Up for being my 200th reviewer! Please review with your pairing choice and all the other shit I asked for in the last chapter.**

**Time for the final arc of the series!**

Anna Sophia sat on the couch on that night, alone and quite frankly bored. Not that she hadn't picked up a few guys since Arthur left, nothing of that sort had changed. She just couldn't get Alfred off her mind. Yes, she was in love. So much in love. But not with Alfred, oh no. He was attractive and all, and certainly she'd love to hop into bed with him, but she was in love with something else. All of his money. Yes, there was something about money that nothing and no one could ever replace. The texture, the smell, the taste! All so amazing, she just had to have more of it. And Alfred was loaded. Still, how was she gonna get all of his money over to her.

'Oh Rick We must get married now.' One of the characters on the tv set cried. Anna hadn't been paying much attention to the drama she had been watching, but it was starting to get good.

'I told you, Ashley, I'm not ready to tie myself down to just one girl.' Rick replied. He was the good-looking bad boy the heroine had fallen for and slept with. Though it was a drama about college students, the actors that played the characters couldn't be that different in age than Anna Sophia herself

Anna took a sip of her diet coke, now thoroughly entranced by the events on the television. 'But Rick- we have to. Because I'm... pregnant." As the scene cut to commercial, Anna spat her soda all over the living room. But not because of the dramatic build up, oh no. It was because she was struck with genius. Or rather, her version of genius that normally involved large amounts of alcohol and cheap seductive tricks. This plan was no different than any of her previous ones.

"Shotgun. Wedding." She smiled. You see, Rick from her television show was the type of boy to sleep around with about every girl in the series, but never get them pregnant because of his parents. He came from a super rich family, and if he ended up getting a girl pregnant, they would make him marry her to keep him from disgracing the family. What if this was the same case with Alfred? If she got him to sleep with her and then she got pregnant, then she would be gold for comfortable living for life! It was perfect! Now all she needed was to get him to sleep with her. She thought for a second. Her prime time to get pregnant was within the next two weeks... so she would have to get pregnant within that time period. Oh well, she loved a challenge.

_~The next morning~_

"Are you ready to go?" Arthur called as he grabbed a waffle from the toaster and was about to head to the door. The young Peter Kirkland came pounding down the stairs, dressed in khaki shorts and suspenders. He grabbed some converse and pulled them over his knee socks, which made Arthur think that Peter's non-Americanism was not the thing holding him back from making friends. He would have to make sure to take him shopping for a new wardrobe that and average American would wear. Not that it would matter too much, because Alfred had insisted that Peter go to the same private school he'd gone to, even going so far as to pay the tuition. He sure was the worlds greatest boyfriend.

Arthur blushed at his previous thought. This was all so new, and Alfred was so great. I mean, sometimes he was a jerk, and he certainly didn't seem to understand the value of a pound- er dollar. But he cared so much for both Arthur and Peter, it was almost perfect. He was almost perfect. "I'm ready to go!" Peter popped up completely by surprise to Arthur. Honestly, Alfred was doing something to his brain, normally he was so alert and no one would be able to surprise him like that. At least that's what he thought.

"Ah yes, but I was talking to Alfred." Arthur corrected. "Come on Al! Are you coming or not." Peter smirked wildly.

"Ah, I see you want your boyfriend to come with us." He nudged Arthur. Honest to god, Arthur found it great that Peter was so supportive of his sexuality, but it did bring up the issue of whether or not his parents would ever get grandchildren, if you catch my drift.

"I'm coming, I'm coming." Alfred ran down the stairs after Peter. He was dressed only slightly better, wearing jeans and a hoodie with the word "Hero" across the chest. Arthur sighed, as he was going fully dressed in a suit as he did everyday. Accept on Fridays, where he liked to go casual and wear only slightly creased slacks and a button down shirt with a sweater vest on top. They went out to one of the many cars Ivan had stocked up for whenever anyone needed to drive anywhere and headed out for one long day.

_~later that day~_

"-life is a cabaret old chum, come to the cabaret." Arthur quietly sang to himself as he worked. Now don't judge him, a lot of people do strange things to keep them working keenly. He sang quietly, a quite common thing to do. I mean, it's not like it was bothering anyone, no one outside of his cubicle could hear.

"Arthur! I'm bored." Peter whined, playing with his shoelaces. "Sing louder!" Now, normally Arthur would be angry and fully deny that he was ever singing, that this was all in Peter's head, but he was so into his work he just ignored that.

"Ask Alfred to take you to the snack machine." He replied without even looking up.

"But Alfred left about 20 minutes ago!" This ruined Arthur's concentration.

"What!" He exclaimed, jumping up from his seat. Why, the kind of damage that Alfred could do to an office in twenty minutes... oh the horror! But sure enough, Alfred came in, holding a bouquet of lilacs. Arthur felt strangely relieved. "Where did you go."

Alfred smirked his signature smirk and wrapped his arms around Arthur. "Why, were you worried about me?" He cooed. Arthur immediately turned a bright shade of red and tried to struggle out of the larger man's grip.

"No! I was just worried about all the damage you could do to my office in the time that you were gone." He defended, though his argument wasn't very convincing. But Alfred played along, pretending to be shocked.

"What! You don't trust me!" He acted. "Why, and after I went through all this trouble to pick up these lovely flowers for your office." Alfred had been spending too much time with Francis, he was starting to act like him!

Arthur ripped the flowers from Alfred's hand. "No more spend time with that bloody frog, you're starting to sound like him." He breathed in the aroma of the flowers. "And thank you for the flowers."

"Hey, Alfred?" Peter interjected. Arthur suddenly remembering that his brother had been in the room for the embarrassing act of his... boyfriend. "I'm hungry, will you take me to the snack machine?"

"Sure." Alfred nodded and escorted Peter out of the cubicle, winking at Arthur as he left. Reluctantly, Arthur got back to work. Or at least attempted to, when his phone rang.

"You've reached APH Electronics accounting. This is Arthur Kirkland speaking." He answered as he always did, though, quite frankly, no one ever called. Except Anna Sophia of course, but what were the chances of th-

'Hello Arthur, how have you been.' Arthur could believe it! It sounded just like Anna on the other side of the phone, but it couldn't be.

"Anna?" He asked in disbelief.

'Who else would it be?' She chuckled. Arthur knew that voice, she wanted something from him.

"What do you want Anna?" He rolled his eyes. He heard her gasp even over the phone.

"Why on earth would you think I meant something wrong with my call. Why, I just wanted to call to invite you and Alfred over for dinner Friday. You know, to talk some things out." She replied.

Arthur thought about this for a second. Something was definitely up, there had to be. Maybe she suspected something of him and Alfred, or worse yet, she wanted him for herself. Knowing her, it was probably the latter. Still, it might be better for all of them for her to be let down early on, because there is no way Alfred would chose her over him. Because of, you know, the whole gender issue. "Alright, but why don't we have it at our- I mean Alfred's house. It's more suitable for guests." This time it was Anna that paused.

"Fine. I'll see you Friday."

** Marf! I'm freaking out because I have 2 auditions tomorrow and I still need to pick a piece to sing. It's harder than it sounds. It really is. But I will get it right! I think I like where the plot is going right now, but that might just be me. I don't know, what do you guys think?**

** It is believed that Shakespeare was 46 around the time that the King James Version of the Bible was written. In Psalms 46, the 46th word from the first word is shake and the 46th word from the last word is spear. Creepy, huh?**


	27. Love is Insane

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia. Sorry, I would have updated sooner, but I was feeling sort of sick. It's hard to do things then. But anyway, this is gonna be a kick ass chapter. You can bet on that!**

**Dedications: Anesan, yeah, well now I'm stuck with this smaller keyboard which actually isn't that bad, I don't know what you were complaining about. Perfect1Up, she so is! I love watching Glee and Make It or Break It, drama's like that, and I have to agree with you. Shimotaku-chan, you've got a point, I like it. Soot, I know! I'm sure Alfred had the same reaction. Yukidaru, boy, wouldn't that be a wake up call. EuphoriaAnger, she so is! When will she learn? Nyasar-chan, Alfred would never be that stupid. XxparanoidxX, hey, if it works, it works. NajikaIce, no! She's essential to the series! Chibi mustang, it will something to remember. The Beatles Sherlock Holmes Fa, oh Shakespeare, tres fruitay. Heizeru Robatsu Hime, that's Gilbert's job!**

**Perfect1Up, so I was writing your fic and I forgot to ask you something super important. What is you preferred rating for this fic. Believe it or not, it is super important. I can write anything, but I wanna know what you wanna read.**

**Good anime alert: Hey! You wanna know what you guys should all watch and/or read? The anime/manga Princess Princess. It's super good, and the multiple slashes that I inserted do mean something, hint hint. What's it about? Well, Toru transfers to a new school in the middle of the year, an all boys school. Now, Fujimori, his new school, is one of most prestigious schools in Japan, and Toru soon learns why in a way he never expected. To keep the boys from acting up, select pretty freshmen boys are forced to dress up as girls to encourage them on. And Toru is one of them! 12 episodes of crossdressing bishies, fanatic fanboys, and some slight shonen-ai.**

**Now to the story.**

Arthur had been completely freaking out the entire day. What did Anna want. She couldn't possibly want to get back together with Arthur, and there was no way that Arthur wanted to get back together with her, no way at all! Maybe she wanted money. Everyone knew she was a gold digger. Well, whatever she wanted, Arthur knew that she would be sneaky and pull out everything in her arsenal to get what she wants. That woman had no morals. She would be there in just a little bit, and Arthur had to make sure everything was perfect. He was wearing his best suit, one Alfred had picked out, and personally set the table just as he saw fitting. He wasn't sure who all was showing up, as he learned those associated with Alfred had a tendency to pop in unannounced and not leave. Ever. So he set many places and stepped back to analyze it.

Alfred saw him doing this and thought it was his perfect chance to get romantic with Arthur. He snuck about behind him and wrapped his arm's around the Brit's waist, lightly biting his ear seductively. Arthur turned bright red in the face, but tried to keep his wits about him. "Please, would you let go. Anna will be here any second and we need to be on our toes. She's sneaky and manipulative, and if we're not careful, she'll take advantage of all of us and drain your family completely dry of your fortune." Also, he would just die if Anna saw him being romantic with another guy, particularly Alfred.

"But you just look so delicious, I can't help myself." Alfred refused to let go, so Arthur just ripped himself out of the other man's grip.

"Please, you want delicious, just wait for Toris's lasagna. He learned the recipe from Gilbert's brother's friend. I tried to make it, but it was so good that Feliciano passed out after eating it." Arthur informed, though both had a feeling that it wasn't because it was so good that the small Italian passed out. Still, Alfred threw his hands up in the air and turned around.

"Fine, fine. But you owe me later." He got real close to Arthur's ear. "Anything I want." He purred.

"Ahem, excuse me, Alfred, but we have an important guest coming over, and I thought I raised you better than this." Both boys turned to see Ivan, sitting at the table like he'd always been there. And maybe he had.

"Of course, Dad, I wouldn't do anything when Anna Sophia got here. But why can't I have a little fun befo-" Alfred was cut off by a doorbell. Speak of the devil. Literally.

"She's here!" Arthur ran to the door. He straightened his hair out, not that it made any difference, then opened. The door. "Hello Anna." He greeted.

"How do you do, Arthur." She replied. Arthur would like to say that she looked stunning. I mean, three months ago, he would have been completely blown away by how she looked. Her long blond hair flowed just perfectly around her back, not a single hair out of place. Though her dress wasn't that extravagant in and of itself, just a classic little black dress, she added a pearl necklace and earring combination. Her shoes were simple strappy black heels that displayed her freshly pedicured toes. She was simply gorgeous. But a lot had changed since he came to Alfred's house, and he felt nothing now when he looked at his former flame. In fact, nowadays, his heart only skipped a beat for Alfred.

"Oh, just terrific!" She tilted her head as she smiled. It was then that Arthur noticed that she was holding a pan. Now I know what you're thinking, Arthur was able to completely analyze her entire outfit, but didn't notice that she was carrying a pan of awfully suspicious brownies. Maybe they were drugged. "I baked my world famous brownies!"

"Yay!" Arthur tried to sound sincere, but to tell the truth, the only reason those brownies would be known worldwide is to warn people that if they came within 15 feet of them, they could expect a visit from the fairy of intestinal distress later.

"Oh, it's not for you." She flew right past him to Alfred, who was standing right by the staircase. "Hi Alfred, I made you some brownies, I heard that you were being so nice to Peter so I baked them for you."

"When did you hear that?"Arthur asked, but he was ignored once again.

"Oh, um, that's, uh really sweet." Alfred couldn't quite deal with this all. It reminded him of back in high school how pretty much everyone treated him. She was obviously sucking up. But he couldn't figure out why.

"Hello, you must be Arthur's ex-wife. I'm Alfred's father, Ivan Braginski, it's nice to meet you." Ivan held out his hand, not realizing that it probably took 2 hands to hold those brownie shaped pieces of death. But she appeared starstruck.

"Oh my, I-Ivan Braginski? Like, the CEO of APH Electronics? Bloody hell!"

"That would be me."

"Get away from my precious older brother, bitch. He's mine, we're gonna get married." A certain blonde popped up from the shadows. It was like Arthur predicted, random appearances by those associated with Alfred. At least it's never boring.

Anna brought her hands to her mouth and pretended to be surprised. "Oh dear, I would never dream of splitting up a devoted couple." Total lie. Arthur knew for a fact that she'd slept with married men while she was married. Yeah, no matter how charming a woman is on a normal basis, the moment you threaten their property, they become complete bitches, even to him. It's why they had no friends. "I'm glad you too are happy."

"Um, excuse me, but I believe the lasagna Toris prepared is almost ready to be served, so why don't we all go to the dining room." Arthur suggested. As he predicted, Elizaveta showed up too, dragging a bespectacled brunette man with her. More people were sure to show up later.

Anna set the brownies on the table with a grin. She'd made them earlier that day, and let's just say Arthur's thoughts held at least some truth to them.

*Earlier that day*

"Let's see... I've got the flour and eggs and chocolate, and whatever the rest of this shit is." Anna stirred her brownies. She didn't cook often, she often ate those slim down meal, although lately she'd lost her appetite entirely, yet she gained 6 pounds, which just doesn't seem fair. "And now for the secret ingredient." She laughed at the end of that statement as though it was some hilarious joke. But there was something special about said "secret ingredient" all part of her plan, you could say.

"Let's see. Use may cause the following side effects..." She picked up a bottle. Amazing what you could buy of the streets these days. It was like a prescription aphrodisiac, only from a shady guy in the park, not an actual doctor. "Drowsiness, anxiety, profuse perspiration, nightmares, constipation, nausea, vomiting, exhaustion, insomnia, seizures." She stopped at one final warning. "Warning: In rare cases, prolonged use had proven to be fatal."

For a second she contemplated whether or not she should really go through this. But this was only for a second before she poured about a quarter of the white powder in the bottle into the mix. "Oh well, one night won't kill him. And hey, if it does, I'll get all his money if I'm pregnant with his baby." She cracked up at the quite frankly sick comment.

They say love is blind, but no doubt, love is insane.

** This series is almost over... oh gosh. It seems like a part of me, really. The entire story. Hey did any of you pick up the reference I made with the last sentence? If you can tell me, you are without doubt the second most awesome person on earth. You know, behind Prussia.**

**Instead of a random fact, I'm gonna leave you with the first paragraph in my original story about the captain of a sky pirate pizza delivery service on a floating country that has to go down to earth rescue the completely bipolar princess, that or get her sky ship destroyed by the king.**

_** In the beginning, there was nothing. And in a split second, there was everything. As if it had always been there. At least that's what it says in the old book. But me, I don't believe what the old book says. No one knows who wrote it or how they got their information. Fact of the matter is they could have just made it up on a whim, such as fiction writers do on a daily basis in the dereanged hope of earning a few nachts. And yet entire civilizations are built on what it says. I think that sounds crazy! But I'm sure you don't care much for what I think. You probably just assume I'm merely a know-it-all brat saying such controversial things to make my parents angry. Well, there is a major flaw in that theory. I don't have parents. I'm not sure if I ever did. Not that it matters anyways. Ancestry isn't really a big deal when you're a sky pirate.**_

**I know that sounds a little anti-religious, but it's just the beginning. I'm actually a huge church girl, but this is just how I picture Delokkia would think. Delokkia is the main character, the one who's speaking. Anyway, I'm just writing this and having a fun time, so I thought I'd share it with all you guys.**


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